Destination: Almost Perfect
by roadtoforever
Summary: Addek, MarkOC. Kalen Shepherd is Addison's daughter, and is following closely in her mothers footsteps. Read and Review please! Final Chapter up!
1. Into The Fire

**Okay. Yes, I am supposed to be working on Half Love but this is what happens when I get writers block. I start something else. This isn't going to be super long, but I wanted to post it to see what y'all thought. And I promise, I am working on Half Love.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Into The Fire"**

_Come on, come on  
__Put your hands into the fire  
__Explain, explain  
__As I turn and meet the power  
__This time, This time  
__Turning white and senses dire  
__Pull up, pull up  
__From one extreme to another –  
_"_Into The Fire"  
__By Thirteen Senses_

Richard Webber set the stack of charts on the floor and sighed. In three weeks he would be announcing who would be taking over for him as Chief, and he was starting to get tired of the pestering. He knew he was going to make the right decision; he just wasn't sure how the others were going to feel. As Richard leaned back in his chair, a soft knock came at the door, and he looked up to see a young woman standing in his doorway.

"Well. I'm a little surprised." He said, standing.

"Why is that?" She asked, giving him a hug.

"I figured that I would see you a little sooner."

The girl shrugged. "I've been busy. I tried to get out here sooner, but the soccer season just finished."

Richard nodded. "Right. I forgot. You know all the details, don't you?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I know all of it." She took a deep breath. "Are they here?"

"Of course they are. He's in surgery, and she's...either asleep in one of the on-call rooms, or watching him." Richard shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. OR1 is to your right."

"Thanks." She left the room and Richard poked his head out the door.

"Kalen?" She turned. "I'm glad you're here. They'll be glad you're here."

Kalen sighed. "I certainly hope so."

* * *

Meredith Grey sat and watched her former love operate with a heavy feeling. She still hadn't told him about Finn. She didn't feel like she had to, but then again, he was trying to be her friend. Meredith jumped as she saw someone else come in to the room out of the corner of her eye. It was two in the morning, and she was the only intern on call. Another person was highly unexpected. 

"Can I help you?" She asked, noticing that the person was a girl of about 20.

"I'm actually looking for Addison Shepherd." The girl said, looking down in to the OR and watching Derek intently. "I was told she might be in here."

"She left to get coffee twenty minutes ago."

The girl laughed. "Classic. She got distracted." The girl took a deep breath and stuck her hand out. "I'm Kalen."

"Meredith." Though Kalen shook her hand, Meredith could feel the sudden tension. "Let me guess. You know who I am."

Kalen looked down. "I'm sorry. I'm not a snap judgment kind of a person, but..."

Meredith shrugged. "It's okay. If you're a friend of Addisons, you're entitled to hate me."

Kalen laughed. "Like I said, I'm not a snap judgment kind of a person. I don't hate people." She sighed, glancing down in to the OR. "Where exactly would be the best place to find Addison?"

Meredith shrugged. "Uh...I'm not sure. I'll take you to the nearest on-call rooms, and if she's not there we can page her. There aren't any surgeries scheduled until 8 am, so she's probably not doing anything." Kalen nodded and followed Meredith out of the room. They hadn't even made it down the hall when they saw Addison leaning against the front desk, flipping through charts.

"I think I can take it from here." Kalen said, smiling. "Thank you though." Meredith nodded. "It was nice to meet you."

"You too." Meredith headed back down the hall towards the OR, only to run in to Derek.

"Hey."

"Hey." Meredith followed him in to the scrub room, waited for him to wash, and then popped the question. "Who's Kalen?"

* * *

Kalen slid off her heels in order to sneak up on Addison, but was stopped by a call from the other end of the hall. 

"K?" Addisons head jolted up just as Kalen turned around, smiling at the sound of Derek's voice.

"Hi."

Derek made his way down the hall at a fast pace, reaching Kalen before Addison had even moved. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

"I wanted to surprise you."

"Well, it worked. Nice timing too."

Kalen laughed. "That was because I had my last soccer game at 2:00 yesterday. I took the crap flight."

Derek laughed. "Well I'm glad you did." Derek pulled her in to a hug and she relaxed in his arms.

"Do you know how long its been?" She asked, tears in her eyes as she stepped back.

"Too long. I'm sorry."

"And you..." Kalen swung around. "What, now you freeze when I walk in to the hospital?"

Addison shook her head, a grin on her face. "No. I was giving the two of you time."

Kalen laughed. "Screw time. I came to see both of you." Addison pulled Kalen in to a hug only to have Kalen burst in to tears.

"Hey, hey..." Addison stepped back. "What is this? You don't cry..."

"I missed you." Kalen whispered. "God, I missed you."

Addison felt tears come to her eyes. "I missed you too. You know I wouldn't have left if..."

"No, no, I know..." Kalen looked down the hall. "Can we...?"

"Yes." Derek said, ushering the two women in to the on-call room. "I forgot she was there."

"Who?" Kalen asked, confused. "Oh...no, I just didn't want to be in the middle of the hall. She doesn't even know who I am anyway..."

"It's not like we were hiding you..." Derek said, looking down.

"Oh, God...Dad, I know. That's not what I meant. I...forget it." Kalen leaned against the door. "I just hate being in the middle of hospital halls. You know that."

"Kalen, are you okay?" Addison asked, sitting down on the bottom bunk.

"Physically? Yes. Emotionally? Not so much." Kalen sat down next to Addison. "I miss my parents." Kalen laughed. "Never thought I would say that."

Addison laughed. "Me neither."

* * *

Derek stepped out in to the hallway, leaving his wife and daughter to talk. As much as Kalen loved him, she was much closer to Addison. Rightfully so. 

"She's your daughter?" Meredith asked, stepping away from the desk. "If we had stayed together, would you have told me?"

"Of course I would have, but...Kalen is twenty years old. And she's not biologically my daughter. When Addison and I met our sophomore year of college, K was 7 months old. The guy had bailed on Addison, but she wanted to raise her own child. I didn't adopt K until right before med school, when Addison and I got engaged." Derek looked down. "She and Addison are closer than close."

"I figured as much. She stiffened when I told her my name."

Derek looked shocked. "Really? That's not really like Kalen...although considering the circumstances..." Meredith nodded, cringing, and then half-smiled as Kalen came out of the on-call room.

"Dad? Oh...sorry...I didn't mean to interrupt..."

"You didn't." Derek said, throwing a smile at Meredith and then turning back to Kalen. "What's up Button?"

"Uh...I was looking for coffee..."

"Yeah, come on. I'll take you." Derek led her down the hall, leaving Meredith standing in the middle of the hall, still a little shocked.

* * *

"So. Aren't you supposed to be in school?" Derek asked, filling Kalen's coffee cup from the machine. 

"Dad..."

"K, you're at Ithaca on scholarship..."

"One, it's a soccer scholarship, and I finished out the season and talked to my coach before coming here, and two, if they take away the scholarship, it's not like we can't afford to pay for it."

"Kalen!"

"What? Do you not want me here?"

"K..."

"Dad, I came here because Mom needs me. You're still making googly eyes at Meredith Grey, and she's dying. She told me not to come, but I can't sit in New York and know that my Mom is emotionally dying. Not going to happen. Screw Ithaca."

Derek sighed. "Kalen, I love your mother. You know that."

"Does she know that?" Derek looked down. "I'm only going to be here for a few days, but I needed my Mommy...and she needed me. You can either deal with it or you can't, but I'm here. And that's it." Kalen left the room, heading back towards the on-call room, and Derek let out a deep sigh. Sometimes that girl was just like her mother.

**So? Any thoughts? Like? Don't like?**

**Mel.**


	2. No Bravery

**Wow. You liked it. I'm a little amazed. Cool.**

**This one's for Kendel. My hero.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**No Bravery"**

_And I see no bravery,  
No bravery in your eyes anymore.  
Only sadness. –  
_"_No Bravery"  
__By James Blunt_

At almost 3 a.m. Addison and Kalen pulled up in front of the trailer, having left Derek behind at the hospital, and Kalen burst in to laughter.

"Right. Okay, Mom. Joke's over."

Addison shook her head. "I'm not kidding, honey. I told you that I lived here."

"You said you lived in a trailer. I thought you meant like a double-wide with a house being built behind it, not a single-wide on this much property."

Addison shrugged. "This is where your father was living when I showed up. Part of us working out our relationship was me moving in here."

"And him not talking to Meredith anymore." Kalen stared at her mother. "Which obviously worked out well."

"Kalen…"

"What? You moved in here, shouldn't he have stopped talking to her?"

"Look, the three of us work together. I can't force him to stop talking to her."

"Denial. You absolutely live in denial." Kalen slid out of Addison's car and gathered her two bags from the back seat before heading to the front door.

"I do not live in denial." Addison said, unlocking the trailer.

Kalen scoffed. "Whatever, Mom."

"Don't 'whatever, mom' me, Kalen. You have no idea what it's been like."

"Really? Why is that?" Kalen snapped, setting her bags on the couch. Before Addison could respond, Doc leaped up, placing his hands on Kalens thighs. "You must be Doc." She said, running her hands over his head. "Hello." Doc barked once and put his front paws back on the ground, laying his head at Addisons feet.

Addison laughed at the blank stare on Kalens face. "He likes you."

"Well, at least the dog is glad I'm here." She said, half-grinning. "So, where am I sleeping? Couch? Porch? With the dog?"

Addison rolled her eyes. "Jesus you're snippy."

"It's three a.m."

"You can share the bed with me. Your father won't be home until almost ten, and at that point you'll be up."

"Says who?" Kalen asked, tossing her bags on the bed.

"Says you never sleep past eight."

Kalen smiled. "I guess that's true." Kalen flopped back on the bed, tossing her bags over the side. Addison sat down next to her, watching her daughter. "What?"

"K, why are you here?"

"What do you mean? I came to see you."

"Kalen Michelle, I know that there is something else going on. What is it?"

"Nothing."

Addison gripped her daughter's wrist and pulled her in to a sitting position. "Kalen, do not lie to me."

"God, Mom, I'm not." Kalen snapped, ripping her wrist free of Addisons grip. "I missed you for crying out loud. That's all." Kalen stood and walked out on to the porch, fuming. Truth was, that wasn't all. She'd needed to get away from New York; away from Mark Sloan. Kalen had made a horrible mistake, and taking a few days away from her horrible mistake would be best.

* * *

Addison watched her daughter sleep an hour or so later, after they had finally had a semi-decent conversation and Kalen had crashed. Addison knew that something else was going on, something that Kalen wasn't telling her, but she wasn't sure how to get it out of her. She was still waiting for Kalen to tell her the truth about what she'd been doing the last few months, because even though Kalen thought Addison didn't know about Europe, Addison knew about Europe. That was the one thing Addison still liked about Mark. All Addison did was ask how Kalen was doing and Mark spilled the whole thing. 

"_I didn't really want you to call me." Addison said, leaning against the counter. She'd only been in Seattle a few months, and Mark calling her was not what she needed._

"_I just wanted to talk to you." Mark sighed. "Besides, I have to tell you something, but I can't flat out tell you. You have to ask."_

"_I have to ask?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Mark, how am I supposed to know what to ask?"_

"_You would probably ask it anyway...just think about it."_

_Addison thought and then gasped. "How's Kalen doing?"_

"_Oh thank God. She left. She told me that she needed money for something, and then when I signed the paper to withdraw the money, she told me that she had talked the Dean and her soccer coach in to giving her the time off to go to Europe. She left when the regular soccer season ended, and she'll be back right after playoffs…just in time to start the spring/summer semester."_

_Addison was frozen. Derek had told her not to go to Europe. "She went to Europe?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Oh God. Derek's going to kill her."_

Addison sighed. True, Kalen had only spent 5 months in Europe, but that was way more than Derek had wanted her to spend there. Addison was pretty sure he adamantly told her no. Addison heard Kalen's phone beep and fought the urge to check who the text message was from. Kalen had been her sidekick for years, they told each other everything, but after the affair Kalen had withdrawn, and Addison wasn't sure how to fix it.

* * *

Kalen woke at almost eight the next morning, her mother sleeping beside her, the dog laying across their feet. She hated that Addison didn't know about Europe, or about the whole mistake thing, but Kalen wasn't sure what her reaction was going to be. Kalen slid her feet out from underneath Doc and swung them over the side of the bed, grabbing her phone and heading in to the main part of the trailer. She sat down at the kitchen table and flipped open her phone to find two text messages, one from her best friend Megan, and the other from…Mark. Kalen read the one from Megan first, cringing as the words appeared on the screen. 

_Have you told them yet? You need to tell them.  
__I know you didn't keep her, but A & D need to  
__know that they have a grandchild.  
__Be an adult K.  
__Megz._

She knew Megan was right, but she wasn't ready to tell them about Hadley. Not yet. Hadley had been the real reason that Kalen had gone to Europe. Not for fun, but to have her child…the child whose father she was entirely unsure of. Kalen stood and walked in to the bedroom, pulling the worn photograph out of her purse. She froze when Addison stirred, but Addison didn't wake up, so Kalen went back to the table and unfolded the photograph. It was a picture of her, holding Hadley, Megan by her side. Kalen folded it and set her arm on top of it, reading through the next text.

_You left without saying goodbye to me.  
__I don't regret it, Kalen.  
__I know you're younger.  
__I know you're their child.  
__But I don't regret it.  
__M._

Kalen choked back a sob and slammed the phone shut. She needed to go for a run. Kalen tiptoed back in to the bedroom and gathered some of her running clothes from her bag. After slipping in to them in the tiny bathroom, she left Addison a note, tied a leash to Doc, and left the trailer. The only thing she forgot was the worn photograph sitting on the table.

* * *

Addison woke with a start. Kalen wasn't in the bed, and not even the dog was in the trailer. Addison slid out of bed and in to the kitchen-area, noticing that it was almost nine. There was a note sitting on the table, and Addison slid in to the seat and read through the note. 

_I took Doc for a run. I'll be back soon.  
__I took my cell phone incase I get lost…although I kind of doubt that.  
Make us a lunch reservation or something, Mom.  
We have a lot to talk about.  
__K._

Addison smiled and then realized that something else was sitting on the table. Addison unfolded what looked like a worn photograph and gasped. Her baby was holding a baby. Kalen was holding her own child. Addison stared at the photograph, hoping it wasn't actually true, when Kalen walked in to the trailer.

"Hey Mom. Man, I almost got lost in those woods. Good thing Doc knows them so well." Kalen began to untie her shoes until she realized that Addison hadn't responded to her. "Mom?"

"Is this why you went to Europe?" Addison asked, turning around and holding up the picture.

"You knew about Europe?" Kalens face paled.

Addison nodded. "Is this why?" Kalen stared for a minute, and then patiently walked out of the trailer and down the steps before vomiting in to the grass. This visit was not going as planned.

**Eh? Like it? Hope so!**

**Mel.**


	3. Sad Eyes

**The reception I'm getting is making me high. Like crackwhore high. I love you guys.**

**Oh…in case you were wondering…Kalens child is NOT Marks. I repeat…Kalens child is NOT Marks.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Sad Eyes"**

_But I'm gonna get you into the light  
And I'm gonna find a way that is right  
And I'm gonna get you into the light  
And make it okay  
Sad eyes  
You are the only one whose blue skies are grey  
So don't cry  
You'll be the only one to make them go  
away –  
_"_Sad Eyes"  
__By Josh Rouse_

When Kalen was little, she had a routine. Everyday she would come home from school, drop her bag by the door and go in to her parents' room. She would sit down in the center of the bed and pull one of the pillows from her mothers side on to the bed in front of her, and then place her head on it. Sometimes, Addison and Derek would come home from the hospital and find her still lying there, head on the pillow, eyes closed. When Addison finally asked why she did it, Kalen told her that it made her feel safe. On certain occasions, when she'd had a bad day, Kalen would come home, drop her bag by the door, and go in to her parents' room, as per usual, but this time, she would go to the closet. After rummaging through her fathers side of the closet, Kalen would curl up in the corner of the walk-in, wrapped in one of Derek's flannel shirts. That was when she was little.

Now, at twenty, Kalen was sitting on the floor of the trailer, her back pressed against the side of the bed, wrapped in one of Derek's flannel shirts, trying not to vomit. Again. After throwing up twice outside, Kalen had come back in to the trailer silently, walking past Addison without a word, and heading straight to the cabinet also known as her fathers closet. Blue flannel was the first thing that grabbed her attention, so she pulled it out of the cabinet and slid in on, wrapping herself in it and slumping to the floor. Addison had followed her silently in to the room, sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting for her daughter to take the first step.

"I'm sorry." Kalen choked out, the tears already falling. She was facing away from Addison, but Addison knew her daughters face, and she knew exactly what was happening. Her deep blue eyes were turning grey, and tears were falling on her cheeks. "I should have told you."

"Why didn't you?" Addison asked softly.

"You were busy. And compared to everything else…it was a little low on the priority list."

"Kalen, honey, you are always the first thing on my priority list. You should know that."

"I wasn't then. Daddy leaving; and the whole you and Mark thing…that was the first thing on your list."

"When did you find out?" Addison wasn't going to deny that the affair and Derek leaving weren't high on her priority lists during the fall…she'd be lying if she did.

"Right before Daddy left." Kalen let out a sob. "I came over that night to talk to you and Dad…and right when I got there he was walking out. I was a little more worried about what had happened." Kalen took a deep shaky breath. "I was five months pregnant when you left."

"And then you immediately left for Europe?" Kalen nodded. "Honey, you know your father and I would have supported you."

"You were a little preoccupied Mom. Besides…I didn't want to have a child during college."

"You hated your childhood that much?" Addison asked.

Kalen's head snapped around for the first time in almost ten minutes, a look of shock on her face. "What? No…oh God, Mommy, no…" Kalen put her head in her hands. "That came out wrong. I meant…I couldn't have done it."

Addison sat down next to Kalen on the floor. "Why not?"

"Because as much as I like to pretend I'm just like you…I'm not." Kalen said, shaking her head. "I'm not strong enough to raise a little kid by myself."

"I had Derek…I wasn't by myself entirely." Addison said, smiling. "Did the father not want to be involved?" Kalen cringed, another bought of nausea coming on. "You don't know who it is, do you?" Kalen shook her head, unable to make eye contact with Addison. "Oh, Kalen…"

"I know, it's horrible. But I spent a lot of the summer in places you're never going to hear about, because going home sucked." Addison stared. "No one was ever there, Mom. You were either at the hospital, or God knows where, and Dad was always at the hospital. The house was empty. It was cold, and creepy, and the few nights that I was there I slept in your room." Addison wrinkled her nose. "By myself. God, Mom, I'm not that retarded."

Addison let out a laugh. "I know, K. But you didn't have to go to Europe to have the baby."

Kalen nodded. "Yes, I did. How would it look if the daughter of the two world-renowned surgeons that had just left Manhattan was walking around knocked up? Not great…not to mention, you would have found out."

"Did Mark know?"

Kalen shook her head. "No. If you couldn't tell that I was five months pregnant, he certainly couldn't tell. He knows now though." Kalen cringed. Now her mother was going to ask questions.

"You still talk to him?"

Kalen shrugged. "I'm never going to quit hating him for what happened, but…he's all I've got in New York." Kalen sighed. "I always used to run to him…remember when I ran away?"

Addison nodded. "We'd just told you that Derek wasn't actually your Dad…you left and went to Marks…you were there for almost a week."

Kalen laughed. "Until I realized that you had told Mark not to feed me until I came back."

"We were kidding." Addison said, laughing.

"Yeah, well, either I just didn't think to eat, or he thought you were serious, because by the time I got home I was starving."

Addison laughed. "I remember…you devoured half the food in the fridge." Addison looked down as Kalen leaned against the bed. "K, I just wish you had told me. Giving her up was your decision, and based on the potential you have…it was probably in your best interest, but I wanted to be there."

"I know." Kalen whispered. "I'm sorry." Addison pulled Kalen in to a hug, and Kalen broke down in her mothers arms, pulling the flannel tighter around her.

After holding Kalen for a few minutes, Addison spoke again. "What else is going on, K?"

Kalen looked up, grey meeting piercing blue. "What do you mean?"

"You didn't come here to tell me about the baby, did you?"

Kalen sighed. "Her name is Hadley. And no."

"Hadley?" Addison whispered. Kalen nodded. "I like it. So what else?"

"I…" Kalen took a deep breath. "Is it okay if I give you the readers digest version? I'm not ready to fully talk about it yet."

Addison nodded. "You know you know you can take your time telling me. I'm not going to force you in to anything."

Kalen sighed. "I've only been back a month…Megan and I came back at the beginning of March…and I was doing fine…school doesn't start for a couple of months, so I was managing the soccer team, and then I went and screwed up again." Kalen looked away from Addison, and was startled when her mother brought her chin around so that their eyes met again. "I slept with someone I shouldn't have. I wanted to be done with all of the stupid crap…but apparently I'm not."

"It can't be that bad." Addison said.

Kalen shook her head. "When I'm ready to tell you…it's not going to be pretty."

"Was he at least good?" Kalen froze. She hadn't experienced her mothers bluntness in a while, and it caught her off guard. "I mean, really, if he was a mistake…did he at least make it worth it?"

Kalen laughed. As awkward as this was, at least her mother didn't know that it was Mark yet. "I…uh…"

"K, you and I used to talk about this stuff all the time. Don't pull the 'you're my Mom' card on me now."

Kalen smiled. "Yeah. He was good."

* * *

Derek pulled up in front of the house and stepped out of the car quickly. It was surprisingly sunny for a Seattle spring morning, and Derek noticed that the door to the trailer was open, and he could hear the contagious laughs of both his wife and daughter echoing out in to the open space. Derek made his way in to the trailer, dropping his briefcase right inside the door and kicking off his shoes. As he looked in to the bedroom, it was all he could do not to groan. Of all times, Addison picks now, when their daughter's there, to run around in shorts and a tank top. Granted, Kalen was wearing the same thing, which took a lot of the edge off, but Derek had never been able to resist Addison in shorts. 

"Hey Dad." Kalen said, snapping Derek back.

"Hey." He said his voice cracking.

Kalen laughed. "Could you be anymore obvious?" Derek cocked one eyebrow and then realized that this whole thing was planned. Kalen stood and held out her hand. "Keys?"

"Why?" Derek asked.

Kalen laughed. "You really want me here right now?" Derek glanced over at Addison, who looked as confused as he felt. Okay, so maybe it wasn't totally planned. "I'll go get some food that I'll actually eat, and I'll even take the dog with me." Derek reluctantly handed his keys over to his daughter and then watched her leave, letting Doc leap in to his jeep before getting in to the drivers seat. Derek turned back to Addison, smiling.

"What?" She asked, standing. Derek went weak. Legs. All he saw was legs. "Derek?" After taking one last glance out the door to make sure Kalen was gone, Derek took a few strides towards Addison and pulled her in to a deep kiss. Derek swept the extra clothes off the bed and laid Addison back, running his fingers through her hair.

"You know I love you in shorts, Addie…" Addison giggled as Derek began to kiss his way down her body, and Addison made a mental note to remember that her daughter was a genius before she went completely weak.

* * *

Kalen had just pulled on to the main road when her cell phone rang. Knowing that it most certainly wouldn't be her parents, Kalen ignored it, figuring that it was going to be someone she didn't actually want to talk to. After a few minutes, Kalen reached for her phone and called her voicemail, wanting to know who had called. 

"K, it's Mark. You didn't respond to the text that I sent you this morning…I don't regret anything that happened. Call me back, K, please."

Kalen sighed and deleted the message, tossing the phone in to her purse and silently hoping that ignoring Mark would make him leave her alone. What Kalen didn't know was that Mark wasn't about to let Kalen go without a fight.

**Okay. I added a little squee for ya. Hope you like it.**

**Mel.**


	4. Over My Head Cable Car

**I'm supposed to be in class right now. Ha. Right. As if that's going to happen. Not when I can be at home working on this.**

**Again…this one is for Kendel, who is Kalen in human form and my hero. Seriously.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Over My Head (Cable Car)"**

_Let's rearrange  
I wish you were a stranger I could disengage  
Just say that we agree and then never change  
Soften a bit until we all just get along  
But that's disregard  
You find another friend and you discard  
As you lose the argument in a cable car  
Hanging above as the canyon comes between and  
Everyone knows I'm in  
Over my head  
Over my head  
With eight seconds left in overtime  
She's on your mind  
She's on your mind –  
_"_Over My Head (Cable Car)"  
__By The Fray_

Kalen walked in to the hospital later that afternoon, searching for her parents. They weren't at the trailer when she got back, and they'd left a note saying that they would be at Seattle Grace. Kalen had spent the rest of the morning kicking a soccer ball around and playing with Doc before handing him over to Meredith for an appointment with the vet...which Meredith had seemed freakishly jazzed about. Now she was at the hospital, hoping she could snag at least one of her parents for coffee. Unfortunately, her heart almost stopped when she saw Mark leaning over the counter talking to one of the nurses. She dashed through the nearest door, running in to a doctor she hadn't met yet.

"Can I help you?" The blonde woman asked, looking up from the charts she was reading over.

Kalen took a deep breath. "I just need to hide in here for a few minutes. Is that okay?"

"If you tell me who you are."

"Kalen Shepherd."

The woman nodded. "Right. Meredith told me about you. I'm Izzie Stevens." She said, standing and holding out her hand.

Kalen smiled. "My mom told me about you. She likes you..."

Izzie grinned. "Really?" Kalen nodded. "Well that's good. Can I ask what you're hiding from?"

Kalen slowly pulled open the door and Izzie poked her head in to the hall over the top of Kalen's head. "Him."

"McSteam...uh...Dr. Sloan?"

Kalen stared. "Yeah. What did you call him?"

Izzie blushed. "McSteamy."

Kalen looked back out at Mark and then shut the door. "I'm not going to argue with you on that."

"Why are you hiding from him?" Izzie asked. "If you don't mind me asking."

Kalen sighed. No one else really knew yet, and her mom had said that Izzie was one of the most mature interns. "I...if I tell you this, you have to keep your mouth shut." Izzie nodded. "I slept with him."

Izzie's eyes popped. "Seriously?" Kalen nodded. "Wow."

"Yeah." Kalen took a deep breath. "Do not tell my mother."

Izzie shook her head. "I don't want to be the one breaking that news to her...so I won't."

* * *

"Addison!" Addison stiffened at Marks voice and stopped walking. "Wait." 

"Hi Mark."

"Is Kalen here?" Addison looked startled. "Wait...you've seen her, right?"

"Yes." Addison said. "I didn't realize that you knew she was here."

Mark nodded. "Yeah. I did. Is she at the hospital?"

"I don't know..." Addison watched Marks eyes widen and turned in the direction he was looking.

"K!" Kalen froze, turning around and forcing a smile. Izzie Stevens was standing next to her, and all too quickly escorted Kalen down the hall and in to the interns locker room. "What was that?" Addison shrugged. She didn't know, but she was going to make it a point to find out. "How's she doing?"

"Kalen?" Mark nodded. "Fine. She told me about Hadley."

Mark smiled. "Did she tell Derek?"

Addison shook her head. "No. And I'm not going to tell him for her. She knows that."

"Well I'm glad she told you. I've been trying to get her to tell you for weeks." Addison cringed. She hated that Mark knew before she did. "Did she tell you why she left New York?" He asked.

Addison shook her head. "Not really. She said she made a mistake with someone…that's all she said." Mark nodded. He knew Kalen felt that way about what had happened…even if he didn't. "Why are you here Mark?"

"I wanted to talk to Kalen…she's not answering my phone calls or text messages."

"Why?"

"I don't know."

Addison laughed. "No…why did you want to talk to her?"

Mark shrugged. "It's kind of a long story."

Addison nodded. "Sure." She didn't like that her daughter was so close to Mark. It worried her. What really worried her was that Kalen and Izzie left the locker room at a quick pace, racing pastCristina and George and out of the hospital. And then Derek rounded the corner.

"What are you doing here?" Derek snapped, stepping up to Addison and Mark. "Is there something else you want?"

Mark sighed. "I just wanted to talk to Kalen." He said, not noticing that Addison was vigorously shaking her head.

"Kalen?" Derek looked at his wife, who shrugged. "Why?"

"It's not really any of your business." Mark said.

"Bull shit it's not any of my business. She's my daughter."

Mark sighed and turned to Addison. "When you see her, will you tell her I'd like to talk to her?" Addison stared at him. "No? Fine. I'll track her down myself." Mark turned around and walked away and Addison let out a held in breath.

"Do you have any idea why he wants to talk to Kalen?"

Addison shrugged. "I don't know. I might, but…Kalen has to tell you herself."

"Addison!"

"I'm sorry Derek, but…this is her thing to discuss with you. But there's more to it than she's telling me, so I don't really know anything…"

"How did we screw up?" Addison looked taken aback. "I just mean…"

"Derek, we did not screw up. Kalen chose to still be friends with Mark…she may not want to be friends with him, and that's why she's ignoring him…but it was her decision."

Derek shook his head. "I shouldn't have left. I should have stayed…if not for you and I, for Kalen. I never should have left New York." Derek walked down the hall, and Addison realized that no matter how many 'Kalen chose this' excuses there were, it was partially their fault. They left their daughter in New York.

* * *

"Shouldn't you still be at the hospital?" Kalen asked, glancing at her watch as Izzie led her in to Joe's. 

"My shift was about to end anyway. I was only going to stay in that closet for another five minutes, before I could go home." Izzie smiled. "Besides, they'll page me if they need me."

"Hello Izzie." Joe said, smiling as they sat down at the bar. "Who's your friend?"

"I'm Kalen Shepherd." She said, grinning.

"As in McDreamy's kid?" Joe asked. Kalen stared. "Derek Shepherd?"

"Is my father…yeah."

Joe nodded. "What can I do you for?"

Kalen took a deep breath. She was still two months from being twenty-one, but the guy hadn't asked for an I.D. yet, so Kalen took her chances. "Manhattan please." She was lucky Izzie didn't actually know how old she was.

Joe looked her up and down. "Okay, sure." His mind was saying that she was under twenty-one, but he figured that he'd give her the benefit of the doubt. After all, she was Shepherds kid. Izzie looked over at Kalen. She wasn't even sure if Kalen was actually twenty-one, but the girl needed some alcohol, so she wasn't going to push it. "So Derek is your father?" Joe asked, eyeing the girl. She didn't look anything like Derek Shepherd.

"Adoptive father. Addison Shepherd is my biological mother, though." Joe nodded. That explained why she looked so much like the tall red-head.

"Are you just visiting?" He asked.

Kalen nodded. "Just for a couple of days."

Joe smiled. "Well…welcome to Seattle."

* * *

A few hours later, Izzie and a rather drunk Kalen stumbled out of the bar. 

"You realize it's only 7:00?" Izzie asked, watching Kalen struggle in to the passenger seat of her fathers car.

"You realize I'm not actually twenty-one?" Kalen snapped, grinning. Izzie cringed. Stupid. "Just don't tell my mother."

Izzie laughed. "Right. That's not going to happen. I'm taking you home."

Kalen shook her head. "Please…don't. They'll ask me about Mark. I don't wanna…I can't."

Izzie looked at Kalen, who was on the verge of drunken tears. "Fine. But I'm only keeping you at my place until you've sobered up. Then I'm taking you home."

Kalen nodded. "Okay." They drove in silence to Meredith's home, and once they got there, Kalen stumbled out of the car and on to the grass. "Nice place."

"It's Merediths." Izzie said, helping Kalen up the steps.

"Meredith? As in Meredith Grey?" Izzie nodded and Kalen made a face. "Goodie."

"Look, I know she's not your favorite person because she slept with your father, but just…try to be nice, okay?"

Kalen shrugged. "Hey, whatever man. I slept with the man that helped my mother cheat on my father…who am I to judge?" Izzie sighed and shoved Kalen through the front door, startling Meredith, who was sitting in the living room.

"What's going on?" Meredith asked, standing.

"Uh…I accidentally got Kalen drunk. Can't take her home yet."

"Accidentally?" Izzie nodded. "Let me guess…you didn't know that she wasn't twenty-one, and Joe didn't ask?" Izzie nodded again. "Smooth, Izzie. Very smooth."

Izzie shrugged. "All we have to do is keep her hear until she's sober enough not to say anything stupid."

"Stupid?" Kalen asked. "I never say anything stupid when I'm drunk. I just tell the truth."

Izzie stared at Meredith. "Like that."

* * *

Addison paced the hospital, worried. Kalen wasn't answering her phone, Stevens wasn't returning pages…Addison had no idea where her daughter was, and it was starting to really scare her. 

"Dr. Shepherd?" Addison spun around as a nurse came up to her. "Call on line one. Izzie Stevens."

_Thank God._ Addison smiled. "Thank you." The nurse nodded and Addison made her way to the nearest phone and picked up line one. "Izzie?"

"Dr. Shepherd. Hey. Uh…I have Kalen with me."

"I figured as much. Where have you two been?" Addison snapped.

"You cannot get upset. Even though you're totally entitled to." Addison sighed in response. "I sort of got her drunk. And then I brought her back to Meredith's to sober her up, and that didn't work. Now none of us are sober enough to drive. Especially not Kalen."

"She's not even twenty-one, Izzie!"

"I didn't know that! At first…look, you should really come get her. You know, when you're free."

"I'm free now. I've been free for hours. I'll be there soon."

"Okay…" Addison hung up the phone and raced in to the nearest on-call room to find Derek. They had chosen to stay at the hospital in case Kalen came back, but Derek had been dead tired.

"Derek…Derek…" Addison shook her husband awake. "I know where she is."

"Where?" He asked, groggy.

"Merediths. They got her drunk."

Derek groaned. "Okay. Let's go."

"Do you remember how to get there?" Derek stared. "Sorry. Stupid question." The couple left the room quickly, Derek gripping Addisons hand. All Addison could think about was that Kalen was just like her when she was drunk. She opened her mouth and told the truth.

* * *

Izzie opened the front door slowly and sheepishly, half-smiling at the Shepherds. 

"Where is she?" Derek asked before she could even open her mouth.

"Kitchen." Izzie spat out, not even bothering to direct him. Derek knew where he was going. He sprinted past Izzie and in to the kitchen, leaving Addison in the dust. "I'm really sorry, Dr. Shepherd."

Addison sighed. "It's okay, Izzie. You know, if you're going to get my daughter drunk, you could at least call me Addison." Izzie nodded as she led Addison in to the kitchen.

"Kalen, what were you thinking?" Derek asked, staring at his daughter from across the kitchen.

"Daddy, you know that I drink. You yourself have given me alcohol."

"Kalen…you were in a public bar, and you were hanging out with two people you don't know. Not your greatest decision."

"What does it matter whether or not I know them? Mom likes Izzie, and you obviously like Meredith…" Meredith made brief eye contact with Addison and then looked away. "Besides…it's one of the better decisions I've made in the last year."

Addison cringed. "Kalen…"

"No, he should really know." Kalen stared Derek in the eye. "Remember how you told me not to go to Europe?" Derek nodded. "Well I did."

Derek sighed. "Kalen…"

"Oh, no…it gets better, just you wait." Kalen took a deep breath. "I was pregnant when I left. Five months. And I had the baby in Europe." Addison put her head in her hands and Derek stood stock still, his mouth slightly agape. "Her name is Hadley. She was gorgeous. She looked just like the baby pictures that I've seen of Mom." Addison looked up. "She was perfect." Kalen took a shaky breath. "I gave her up." Kalen glanced at Addison and then looked back at Derek. "I don't even know who her father is."

Derek sighed. "Oh, Kalen…" Derek took a step towards his daughter and she moved to the corner of the kitchen, basically placing Meredith between herself and her father. "Button…"

"Don't. Don't call me that. In about two minutes you're going to hate me, so just…don't." Kalen took a deep breath. "I…when I came back, I slept with someone I shouldn't have."

"Kalen, that happens to everyone." Derek said, briefly glancing at Meredith.

Kalen shook her head. "You don't understand." Kalen took a shaky breath. "I slept with Mark." Derek froze and Addisons jaw dropped. Both interns turned and looked at Addison, who was standing in the corner of the kitchen, her eyes wide and her mouth agape. It was obvious to Addison that Izzie already knew, but Meredith was almost as shocked as she was.

Derek swallowed hard. "You what?"

**I hope you guys liked it!**

**Mel.**


	5. Everytime We Touch Part I

**Love is how I feel about you all. Seriously.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Everytime We Touch" Part I**

_Your arms are my castle; your heart is my sky.  
They wipe away tears that I cry.  
The good and the bad times, we've been through them all.  
You make me rise when I fall.  
Cause everytime we touch, I get this feeling.  
And everytime we kiss I swear I can fly.  
Can't you feel my heart beat fast, I want this to last.  
Need you by my side.  
Cause everytime we touch, I feel this static.  
And everytime we kiss, I reach for the sky.  
Can't you hear my heart beat so  
I can't let you go.  
Want you in my life –  
_"_Everytime We Touch"  
__By Cascada_

_Previously on Destination: Almost Perfect:_

_Kalen shook her head. "You don't understand." Kalen took a shaky breath. "I slept with Mark." Derek froze and Addisons jaw dropped. Both interns turned and looked at Addison, who was standing in the corner of the kitchen, her eyes wide and her mouth agape. It was obvious to Addison that Izzie already knew, but Meredith was almost as shocked as she was._

_Derek swallowed hard. "You what?"_

Kalen froze and immediately sobered. "Oh my god." She slid down the cabinets and hit the floor. "Oh my god." Derek and Addison looked at each other. Kalen stared at the floor, nausea rising.

"Kalen…" Kalen shook her head and brought her knees to her chest. Addison moved from her spot in the corner and passed Derek, who was still shocked. Addison kneeled down in front of Kalen. "Honey."

Kalen squirmed away from Addison. "Don't." Addison reached out for her daughters hand and Kalen yanked it away. "Don't touch me."

"Kalen." Kalen looked up at Izzie, who managed a smile. "At least tell them what happened."

"I don't want to tell them what happened." Kalen snapped. "I can't believe I even told them at all."

"Were you drunk?" Kalen looked at Derek, her eyes wide. "On crack? Cocaine? Meth?" Derek's voice was rising. "There has to be some sort of explanation…"

"I was drunk." Kalen said, her voice soft. "We were both drunk." Kalen avoided eye contact with both Addison and Derek, but as Kalen stared down at the floor, Addison knew that it was more than a drunken one-night-stand. It was way more.

* * *

The ride home in Addisons car was silent. Neither Kalen nor Addison spoke, and Kalen spent the whole ride staring out the passenger side window. Addison didn't know what to say, and it wasn't until they pulled up in front of the trailer that Addison spoke. 

"Were you really drunk?" Addison asked, getting a jump out of Kalen.

"Yes." Kalen looked down. "No. Neither of us were."

"Who started it?"

Kalen sighed. "Mom, I don't want to talk about this with you."

"I have every right to know."

"Why? Because you slept with him too?"

"Kalen!" Addison snapped. "Don't talk to me like that." Kalen scoffed and got out of the car, leaning against the side of the trailer. "Kalen…"

"I don't think you understand how difficult this is for me." Kalen said softly. Derek had stepped out on to the porch, having arrived back at the trailer a few minutes before Addison and Kalen. "I've been avoiding him for a week. I was in a bad place…and the next morning I immediately regretted it." Kalen sighed. "And then I regretted regretting it. Because Mark…he doesn't regret it."

Addison cringed. "Mark doesn't know what he's doing."

"What do you know?" Kalen snapped. "You don't even talk to him anymore."

"Why should I?" Addison asked. "He tried to break your father and I up."

"It's not all his fault Mom. It takes two people to have sex."

"Thank you." Addison snapped. "I had no idea."

"Well you act like it's all his fault, and it's not."

"Are you defending him?" Derek asked, startling Kalen.

"Yeah. I am. So what?" Kalen slammed against the side of the trailer. "Mark's all I've had since you left in August." Kalen said, still looking at Derek.

"What are you talking about?" Derek asked. "Your mother was still there."

"Physically. Mentally…not so much." Addison looked panic stricken. "I didn't really have anyone else to go to. Mark wasn't just your guys' best friend. He was mine too. I grew up with him."

"And then slept with him." Addison said, receiving a glare from Kalen.

"Can you not be blunt for once? God damn it." Kalen kicked the ground. "Mark was my friend first…and it escalated in to something it shouldn't have. And I hate that. I really do." Kalen sighed. "To an extent."

Derek raised his eyebrows. "To an extent?"

"She means that…"

"I'd like her to tell me." Derek snapped at Addison. "She's twenty years old. Obviously she feels she can make her own decisions."

"I can make my own decisions. I've been making my own decisions since I was 14. You two stopped being involved when I started high school." Addison and Derek looked at each other. Kalen was right. "I needed a friend. Someone I could talk to who wouldn't judge me. Half of my friends at school think that I think that I'm too good for them because I'm your child, and the other half stopped talking to me when I went to Europe. I couldn't talk to either of you because you were all the way over here…and Mark was the only person who I knew I could trust."

"What about Savvy?" Addison asked.

Kalen scoffed. "Savvy can't keep a god damn secret from you to save her life." Kalen staggered backwards, her intoxication affecting her ability to stand.

"We're going to finish this in the morning." Derek said. "But you need to sleep this off. But we're going to finish this. I promise you that." Derek turned around and walked in to the trailer. Addison followed, and after taking a few deep breaths, so did Kalen. Derek had left extra sheets on the couch, so Kalen laid them out and curled up, her back facing Derek and Addison. It was the first night since giving up Hadley that Kalen cried herself to sleep.

* * *

When Derek and Addison awoke the next morning, Kalen wasn't in the trailer. Addison panicked at first, but then calmed a little when she saw the note on the counter. 

_I needed coffee.  
__Izzie picked me up.  
__I'll see you at the hospital.  
__I love you.  
__I'm sorry.  
__K._

Derek wasn't talking to Addison, which she had almost expected, but he broke when he saw the note.

"We need to get to the hospital as soon as possible. I want to talk to her."

"So do I." Addison said, sitting down on the couch. "Are you mad at her?"

Derek shrugged. "I don't know."

"How about me?"

Derek sighed. "No, Addie…I'm not mad at you."

Addison nodded. "Okay."

The couple got ready for work in silence, working around each other, and then leaving together in Addisons car. They rode to the hospital in silence, and when they got there, Kalen was standing outside, holding a cup of coffee.

"Hi." She said as they walked up to her. Addison managed a smile.

"Hi." Derek said. "Why are you standing out here?"

"Mark's in there." Kalen said. "I don't…I'm not ready to talk to him."

"How about us?" Addison asked. "Are you ready to talk to us?"

Kalen took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah. Sure." She followed her parents in to the hospital, passing Izzie, who gave her a sympathetic smile, before being stopped by Meredith as her parents rounded the corner.

"You know this better than I do, but I thought that I would remind you…your parents are good people." Kalen nodded. "They love you…and they may be disappointed, but you need to tell them everything you told Izzie and I this morning. It's only fair."

Kalen nodded. "I know. Thank you." Kalen headed around the corner and in to the office her parents were sitting in. "Sorry. Meredith stopped me."

"Shut the door." Derek said, barely acknowledging her statement. "I want to know what happened."

Kalen sat down in the chair Derek shoved towards her and sighed. "Everything?"

Addison nodded. "Everything."

Kalen took a deep breath. "Okay." Kalen closed her eyes. "When I got back from Europe, I was a little worse for the wear. I'd been in a foreign country for five months, most of those months pregnant, and I'd left my child there." Kalen opened her eyes and looked at Addison. "It sucked. Plus, I was hoping that I would get back and you two would have moved back. Sure, it would have sucked a little, because then you would have known where I was, but I wanted you there…" Kalen took a shaky breath and looked down. "And you weren't there. I spent the first three days getting all of my affairs in order…making sure that I still had my dorm, and my place on the soccer team, all of that. Then Mark showed up at my dorm." Kalen took a deep breath. "He was worried, because he hadn't heard from me since I left." Kalen looked at her mother. "You were the only one I kept in contact with." Addison nodded. "So he was worried. We went to dinner, and I ended up spilling everything to him…all about the baby, and everything…and then I spent that night on his couch. I didn't want to go back to my dorm…my roommate moved, so it was just me, and I hated it." Kalen swallowed hard. "Mark and I spent a lot of time together, and then he flew out here to see you." Addison grimaced. "I was worried about him. I didn't think anything would happen, and, of course, nothing did." Kalen took a deep breath. "When he came back, he was upset. He was sure he still loved you, but when he saw you two together, and the look of disgust in both of your eyes, he realized that there was no place for him with the two of you. At first I thought that meant me too, and I was worried."

"Why?" Derek asked, leaning back in the chair he was sitting in.

"Because he was my friend. And I'd already lost the two of you; I didn't really want to lose him too." Addison was on the verge of tears, but Kalen didn't stop. "I didn't talk to him for three days, and then he showed up at my dorm one night, obviously as upset as I was. He said he missed me, that he'd realized that he wasn't in love with you, and he wanted to know why I hadn't been around. So I told him…and he said that he and I not hanging out because he wasn't friends with you two was ridiculous." Kalen sighed. "After all, you were all the way across the country. He spent that night in my dorm, and we spent every moment together for the next week." Kalen looked down, putting her head in her hands. "It was like I finally got a best friend back." Addison cringed. Kalen had always thought of her that way. "One night, I was at his place, and I'd fallen asleep on the couch, and I woke up at about one in the morning after having this horrible dream." Kalen sighed. "I don't really remember it now, but it had a lot to do with Hadley…and the two of you." Addison and Derek looked at each other, and Derek took hold of his wifes hand. She was crying. "Mark had fallen asleep in a chair, and heard me wake up. I was really upset, and we sat on the couch and talked and then he let me cry until almost two. I felt safe."

"Safe?" Addison asked the tears evident in her voice. "He made you feel safe?"

"Yeah, Mommy. He made me feel safe." Kalen took a deep breath. "I hadn't felt safe in a long time. I know you guys hate him, but…"

"Kalen…what happened?" Derek asked, wanting to get the conversation over with.

Kalen took a deep breath. "I kissed him. And I expected him to pull away. But he didn't. He kissed me back." Derek cringed. "I woke up the next morning and I felt sick. I'd slept with my parents' former best friend…and I felt horrible. I shouldn't have done it…but I did." Kalen looked up, making eye contact with Derek. "I avoided him for days…and then I agreed to meet him at a coffee shop. I told him that it was a mistake; that it shouldn't have happened, but he didn't feel the same way." Kalen sighed. "I left without telling him."

"He figured out where you were." Derek said.

"Where else would she have gone?" Addison asked, staring at him.

Derek shrugged. "I don't know." He turned to Kalen. "I just can't believe that this happened. What were you thinking? Where was your head?"

"Dad…"

"No, Kalen, don't 'Dad' me. What the hell were you thinking? He's my age, Kalen. My age!" Kalen looked down. "And he's the same man that screwed up my relationship with your mother…how could you?"

"I don't…I'm sorry." Kalen said, staring down at her legs. "I don't know what else to say." Kalen stood. "I'm sorry." Kalen left the room, letting the door slam behind her.

"Derek!" Derek stared at Addison. "She's our daughter!"

"She's your daughter." He snapped. "That much is evident."

Addison looked taken aback. "She's twenty, Derek. She's going to make mistakes."

"Sleeping with Mark is a pretty big mistake, Addison."

"I know." Addison sighed. "I made it too." Derek looked down. "Honey, she obviously regrets it. It doesn't seem like it's something that will happen again…" Addison took a deep breath. "I know you haven't forgiven me yet…sometimes I can't even tell if you're trying…"

"Addie…of course I'm trying."

Addison shook her head. "At least try to forgive Kalen. Give one of us a chance, okay?" Derek put his head down and Addison stood, leaving him alone in the room. He still wasn't sure where to go with this…he needed to talk to Kalen.

* * *

After talking with Derek, Addison headed down the hall at a slow pace. Work-schmerk. She wanted to find Kalen, and Richard would understand. Addison rounded the corner and ran directly in to Izzie. 

"Morning Dr. Shepherd."

"Izzie…"

"Sorry. Addison." Izzie grinned. "Morning Addison."

"Morning. Have you seen Kalen?"

Izzie nodded. "I saw her disappear in to the stairwell a few minutes ago." Izzie sighed. "She seemed pretty upset."

Addison nodded. "Derek blew up at her." Izzie cocked one eyebrow. "Because of Mark."

"Oh right." Izzie cleared her throat. "Well, Meredith and I saw her go in to the stairwell a few minutes ago."

"Thanks." Izzie nodded and Addison headed down the stairwell, stopping a level above Kalen. She could see Kalen huddled on the floor, her knees pulled to her chest. Addison heard a door open and Kalen looked up.

"They hate me."

"I doubt that." Addison jumped at the sound of Richards voice. He was not who she was expecting. "Everyone screws up, Kalen."

"Not like me. Europe, a baby, Mark…I've screwed up pretty bad."

"It's not like your parents are perfect." Addison stifled a laugh. Richard would certainly know. "Give them a little time, Kalen." She nodded. "He's sitting in my office waiting for you. Maybe talking to him would help you."

Kalen raised her eyebrows. "Mark?" Addison cringed. "Yeah, okay." Kalen stood and left the stairwell. Addison followed slowly, still unsure if Kalen talking to Mark was a good idea.

* * *

Kalen took a deep breath and turned the door knob slowly. Mark turned around as she came in to the room. 

"Hey…" He said, smiling.

"Hi." Kalen shut the door.

"How are you?" Mark asked, standing.

Kalen shrugged. "Fine."

"Are you sure?" Kalen nodded. "You look upset." Kalen looked down. "Have you told them yet?" Kalen nodded as tears began rolling down her cheeks. Mark took two strides towards her and pulled her in to his arms as she began to sob. Mark placed a kiss on the top of her head, and then tilted her chin up and began to plant kisses on her face, trying to kiss away her tears. Kalen closed her eyes, relishing in the feeling of Marks lips on her face.

"Stop." She said suddenly. "Don't."

"K…"

"We can't do this."

"Why not? Because of your parents?" Kalen nodded. "I don't care about your parents."

"I do." Kalen said, stepping away from Mark.

"Kalen…"

She shook her head. "I can't." The tears began to fall again. "I can't." Kalen began to shake. "I can't." Neither Mark nor Kalen noticed that Addison had been standing outside the office for most of their conversation, nor did they notice that Derek had just joined her, lacing his fingers through hers. "I can't be with you." Kalens knees caved and Mark caught her as she continued to sob. Mark sat down and sat Kalen on his lap, letting her cry in to his shoulder.

"Kalen…"

She looked up at him, tears on her cheeks, both people still unaware of her parents' presence. "I want to. But I can't."

**So? You guys like it? Man, I hope you like it…**

**Mel.**


	6. Everytime We Touch Part II

**Am I the only one not getting email updates? It's starting to really bother me…**

**Hope you guys like this chapter. I know some of you don't like the Kalen/Mark pairing, but just…bear with me, okay?**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Everytime We Touch" Part II**

_I still hear your voice when you sleep next to me  
__I still feel your touch in my dreams  
__Forgive me my weakness but I don't know why  
__Without you it's hard to survive  
__'Cause every time we touch, I get this feeling,  
__And every time we kiss, I swear i can fly,  
__Can't you feel my heart beat fast,  
__I want this to last, Need you by my side.  
__'Cause every time we touch, I feel this static,  
__And every time we kiss, I reach for the sky,  
__Can't you hear my heart beat so,  
__I can't let you go, Want you in my life. –  
_"_Everytime We Touch"  
__By Cascada_

_Previously on Destination: Almost Perfect:_

"_Kalen…"_

_She shook her head. "I can't." The tears began to fall again. "I can't." Kalen began to shake. "I can't." Neither Mark nor Kalen noticed that Addison had been standing outside the office for most of their conversation, nor did they notice that Derek had just joined her, lacing his fingers through hers. "I can't be with you." Kalens knees caved and Mark caught her as she continued to sob. Mark sat down and sat Kalen on his lap, letting her cry in to his shoulder._

"_Kalen…"_

_She looked up at him, tears on her cheeks, both people still unaware of her parents' presence. "I want to. But I can't."_

"What do you mean?" Mark asked, brushing the tears from her cheeks. "Can you explain that, because I'm confused."

Kalen took a deep breath. "You're everything that I want in a guy. You're sweet, you're charming, you know how to comfort me, you can tell when something's wrong; you can provide for me, which is what my parents want…" Mark smiled. "But you're Mark Sloan. You're the man I've known since before I can remember, you're my fathers age, and you're also the man that slept with my mother." Kalen slid off of Marks lap and stood up. "That cancels out everything else. I betrayed them, Mark, by being with you. And they're more important." Mark stood and Kalen took a step back, her eyes on the floor. "I'm sorry."

"They weren't more important a week ago." He said, pain in his voice. "A week ago I was your everything, Kalen…what happened?"

"I realized that being with someone like you was what I wanted…but not being with you." Kalen took a shaky breath. "You're twice my age, you're my parents' former best friend…and you slept with my mother…"

"You've said all that already, K. Addison has nothing to do with us."

"She has everything to do with us." Kalen snapped, finally looking up. "You were her affair…her desperate measure to get my fathers attention."

"I was more than that." Mark snapped. "Whenever you talk about those few months that your father was gone, you skip one detail, Kalen. She stayed with me."

"Don't say that." Kalen said. "You promised."

"And you promised that their attitude about you and I being friends wouldn't affect you."

"Friends, Mark. Not fuck-buddies."

Mark cringed. "We're more than that, Kalen. I love you."

"You don't love me." Kalen hissed, her voice raising. "You never loved me. You love what you see in me."

"What the hell does that mean?" He snapped. Their voices were so loud that Addison and Derek could now hear the conversation.

"You know exactly what that means. I'm the replacement, Mark. As if this weren't already wrong enough, you're using me to replace her."

"Replace? Replace who?"

"Addison!" Addisons face went pale and Derek dropped her hand.

"Derek…" He shook his head and walked in to Richards office.

"Get out." He snapped, his statement directed at Mark.

"This isn't any of your business, Derek."

"The hell its not…get the hell away from my daughter."

Mark shook his head. "No."

"I swear to God…" Derek took a step towards Mark.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. You've already hit me once, Derek. You're due. Don't expect me to hold back this time."

"Don't touch him." Kalen said, her voice demanding. Both men turned to her, and her eyes were fixed on Mark. "If you want me to ever speak to you again, I suggest you don't touch him."

"Kalen…"

"No. I already told you, Mark. This is done. It shouldn't have happened in the first place, but I made a mistake. You need to leave."

"You don't want me to leave." Mark said, his voice soft.

"Yes I do." Kalen's voice cracked as stared at Mark. "I want you to leave."

"Kalen…" Mark took a step towards her and lightly placed his hands on her shoulders. "I know you…you don't want me to leave."

"You don't know anything." Kalen took a deep breath. "If you knew me at all, you'd know that I'm not my mothers replacement." Kalen shoved his hands off of her shoulders and left Richards office, walking past where Addison was and to the elevator. Derek glanced at Addison, who nodded and raced to the elevator, catching it right before it shut.

"What is it with you and the women in my family?" Derek demanded. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I'm not going to deny that Kalen reminds me of Addison, but that is not why I love her."

Derek cringed. "Can you not say that?"

"Fine. Kalen is amazing, Derek. She's sweet, and she knows what she wants. She's not afraid to stand up for herself, or to defend you or Addison. She's perfect." Mark said, looking at the floor.

"She's also twenty years old."

"So?" Mark snapped, looking up. "I don't care how old she is."

"You need to respect her, Mark. Respect what she wants. Leave her alone." Derek left Richards office and took the stairs down to the next level. After all, the elevator was stalled.

* * *

Kalen watched her mother slid in to the elevator and look around. Without making eye contact, Addison hit the stop button, and leaned against the wall. 

"How much did you hear?"

"Just the end."

Kalen shrugged. "Okay." Kalen braced herself against the wall. "So why are you here? I thought you wouldn't want to talk to me."

"You're my daughter, Kalen." Addison said, looking her in the eye. "No matter what you do, I'm going to love you."

"That makes one of us." Kalen faced away from her mother, bracing herself against the wall, her stance reminding Addison of Derek. "I tried to justify it. I tried to tell myself that his qualities cancelled everything else out, but I was wrong. Because it made me sick to look at him."

"Kalen…"

"Kind of like it made me sick to look at you." Addison almost gasped. Kalen had never told her that. "How could you?" Kalen asked, whipping around. "You ruined everything!"

"Kalen…"

"What the hell happened? Huh? Next time you want to get Dads attention…don't sleep with Mark." Kalen moved to un-stall the elevator, but Addison stepped in front of her.

"What's going on? Because you've had almost a year to tell me this, and you're waiting until now?"

Kalen slipped around her mother and pressed the red button. "Let's just say this…" Kalen took a deep breath as the elevator doors opened, revealing her father. "If you hadn't slept with him, this wouldn't be such an issue." Kalen stormed out of the elevator and past Derek, not even acknowledging him. Addison stepped off the elevator and watched Kalen walk out of the hospital.

"What did she mean?" Derek asked, pulling Addison in to the nearest supply closet.

"I think…I think she meant that if what happened between Mark and I hadn't happened…she would be with him."

Derek's face paled. "So she loves him?"

Addison shrugged. "I don't know. But I think so."

* * *

Kalen sat outside on the curb, taking slow deep breaths. 

"I thought your parents would have hidden you somewhere so that I couldn't find you." Marks voice startled Kalen and she jumped to her feet. "What happened, Kalen? That night…I thought we had something."

"We did." Kalen looked down. "We do. Unfortunately, you slept with my mother. I'm not going to be your rebound off of my mother."

"You aren't my rebound. Look, Addison was something that shouldn't have happened…you…Kalen, if what had happened with you mother hadn't happened, something tells me that you and I would have still happened."

Kalen nodded. "I know. We probably would have. The problem is, what happened with my mother did happen, so you and I can't happen."

Mark took a deep breath. "Okay. Fine. I guess I respect that. Can you at least do me one favor?" Kalen nodded. She felt she owed him that much. "Will you have lunch with me? And then I'll fly back to New York and leave you alone."

Kalen took a deep breath. "Okay." Mark took her hand and they walked across the street to Joe's bar, neither noticing that Addison and Derek had watched them walk away together.

* * *

"How long are you staying?" Mark asked, shoving his finished lunch towards the center of the table. 

"My flight leaves tomorrow night." Kalen leaned back in the booth and sighed. "Although, the way things have been going, I might as well fly back now."

"That bad, huh?" Kalen shrugged. "I'm sure that you'll be able to patch things up before you go. You've always been the glue that holds your family together…"

"Yeah, and now that glue is melting and ripping us apart." Kalen scoffed. "I'm not the person I used to be, Mark. It still hurts to look at my parents, not just because I hurt them, but because they hurt me."

"Because they left?"

"They hurt me before that. My parents stopped being involved in my life when I was 14. I can't even remember the last time both of my parents stayed all the way through a school event. It was either one or neither of them, and if it was just one, it was Mom. Dad came to a game during the soccer playoffs my junior year of high school, but he hasn't been since." Kalen sighed. "I just wanted parents. What do I care how much crap I have?"

"It's not about that."

"I know. Their careers are huge, I get that. But it's like they thought that by buying me a nice car, and all these other things, they were making up for not being around." Kalen took a deep breath. "They're not bad parents, they're just…"

"Absent?" Kalen nodded. "Give them time, K. They love you, you know."

"I know."

"And Derek is working on not being so absent with Addison, so give them time. They'll figure it out." Mark smiled. "Hey, I found this really cool place the last time I was here. It's one of those old record stores. You'd love it. Wanna go?"

Kalen stared down at the table, contemplating, and then smiled. "Yeah, okay."

"Great." Mark left money on the table and led Kalen out of the bar. "It's just a couple of blocks." Kalen nodded and then jumped as Mark stopped her. "Although, I don't have very much time, so maybe not."

"Why not?"

Mark shrugged. "I should really pack."

"Mark, come on. If we're ever going to do this friends thing, you can't avoid me."

"I'm not." Mark snagged a taxi that had just dropped someone off and set one foot inside. "I just don't think I can control myself. I'm still interested, Kalen. I know you don't want to do this, but I do. But I respect you, so I think I'm just going to take a step back and I'll talk to you when you're ready." Mark took a deep breath. "Okay?" Kalen nodded and Mark grabbed her arm, pulling her in to a hug. "I'm always here. Call if you need to." Kalen nodded and looked up at Mark. Letting his guard down, Mark leaned down and kissed her softly, running his hands up and down her back. Mark placed one hand on the back of Kalens head and deepened the kiss briefly, then pulled away, a grim smile on his face, and slid the rest of his lanky body in to the taxi. Kalen stood on the sidewalk and watched him drive away, aware that there were tears on her cheeks, even if she didn't care.

* * *

Kalen walked back in to the hospital, wiping the tears from her face. Derek was standing next at the front counter with Addison, both of them looking over a chart. Kalen couldn't help but smile. Their bodies were close, and Derek's left hand was around Addisons waist. She didn't want to interrupt whatever was going on, so she sat down in the nearest chair and leaned back. Her chest had a throbbing pain in it, but Kalen had been dealing with it since that morning, so she ignored it and shut her eyes. That was the last thing she remembered. 

**Okay. The Kalen/Mark thing is over. Happy? Hehe…hope you guys enjoyed this one…**

**Mel.**


	7. Songbird

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Songbird"**

_For you there'll be no crying  
For you the sun will be shining  
Cause I feel that when I'm with you  
It's alright, I know it's right  
And the songbirds keep singing  
Like they know the score  
And I love you, I love you, I love you  
Like never before. – _

"_Songbird"_

_By Eva Cassidy_

Addison and Derek didn't even notice. They were engrossed in the chart, and each other, and thought that Kalen was still with Mark. Derek was going to go after them, but he'd gotten sidetracked. It wasn't until Izzie came running down the hall that they even knew that something was wrong.

"Kalen?" Izzie skidded to a stop in front of the chair. She's seen Kalen sit down and close her eyes, and had turned around to say something to Meredith, and when she's turned back, Kalen was crumpled on the floor. Addison turned around, startled by the fact that her daughter was even there, and then shrieked. "Help me out, Derek."

Derek spun, startled by Izzies use of his first name. He froze. He hadn't been paying attention. "Oh God." Derek lifted Kalen in to his arms and raced down the hall, Addison on his heels. He took Kalen in to an empty room and was then shoved aside by Izzie, George and Bailey, who began hooking Kalen to IVs.

"You can't be in here, Shepherd. We don't know what's wrong with her." Bailey said as the interns finished hooking her to machines. "Unless you do."

Derek shook his head. "No. I don't. She's always been healthy. Unless…" Derek turned to Addison who shook her head, panic on her face. "We have no idea."

"Okay. Out."

"But…" Derek began to protest.

"Miranda, please…" Addison looked devastated.

Bailey sighed. "You can stay." She said, her maternal instinct taking over. "You cannot." She said, turning to Derek once Addison had joined Izzie and George at Kalens side.

"Hey. No. She's my daughter too…"

"Get out, Derek." Addison snapped, very upset. "Please…"

Derek nodded. "Okay. Fine." Derek left the room and Bailey shot the door behind him, beginning to run tests on Kalen. Derek paced outside the room, only momentarily by himself. Addison was pushed out the door a minute later, an angry look on her face. "What the hell…?"

"I was in the way." Addison said her voice teary. "Derek, what have we missed?"

"I don't know…" Derek wrapped Addison in a hug, her tears breaking. "Addie…honey, she'll be fine."

"Why didn't we pay attention?" She asked, the sentence broken by sobs. "We should have paid attention."

"Dr. Shepherd." Addison lifted her head from Derek's chest and looked over at Izzie. "Dr. Bailey said you can come in now." Both doctors moved, but Izzie shook her head. "One at a time. Kalen's not awake, but we don't know what's wrong yet, and we don't want to scare her in to a repeat episode if you're both hovering over her."

"Go." Derek whispered, softly pushing Addison towards the door. She entered the room without looking at him, and Izzie stepped out in to the hall.

"Any idea?" Izzie asked, pulling him over to the desk as Bailey and George left the room.

Derek shook his head. "No. But Addison and I haven't been around since October…"

"We'll figure it out, Dr. Shepherd." Izzie said, trying to be as comforting as possible. "She'll be fine." Derek nodded his mind elsewhere. He hadn't paid attention…and now he didn't even know what was wrong with his own child.

* * *

"K, honey, I'm sorry." Addison choked out, softly holding her daughters hand. "I know your father and I blew up at you about this Mark thing, and I know it's been hard on you…honey, please, wake up." Kalen didn't stir, her heart monitor the only sign that she was still alive. Addison placed her head on Kalen's lap, playing with her daughters fingers. Kalen had always been healthy. There had never been anything wrong, and all the tests that were run when Kalen was born had said that she would always be healthy. Addison took a shaky breath and the door opened, revealing Bailey, papers in her hands, and Derek, who looked angry. "What is it?" 

"These were the first results that came back." Miranda said, shutting the door as Derek sat down on the arm of the chair Addison was sitting in. "I…I think she may have a spinal tumor, and we need a neuro consult…but you can't do it."

"But I'm right here." Derek snapped. "It's not that hard, Miranda."

"She's your daughter, Derek. It's not ethical."

"Screw ethical."

"Derek…" Addison breathed.

"No." He said, turning to her. "I've put my career before my family too many times. I don't care anymore. Kalen is more important than my goddamn career."

"I know. She's more important than both of our careers, but…Derek, just let someone else do it."

"I don't want to."

"No one cares what you want." Richard snapped, walking in to the room. "Dr. Jamison is on his way over from Virginia Mason, and he'll be doing the consult."

"But…"

"No buts, Derek. He'll be here in about twenty minutes." Richard sighed. "She'll be fine. He's a good doctor."

"Not as good as me." Derek snapped.

"Arrogant. No one is, Derek, we both know that, but I can't let you do this. I'm sorry." Richard left the room, Miranda following slowly, giving Addison a sympathetic smile as she shut the door. Addison looked back at Kalen, and sighed.

"Addie…" Addison shook her head and Derek put his arm around her, hugging her to him as she began to sob.

* * *

Kalen woke slowly, her gag-reflex threatening. Almost instantly she began to panic. She was in a hospital bed, there was a tube in her throat, and she had a slight pain in her lower back. Kalen tried to sit up but was stopped by an unfamiliar hand. 

"Don't move yet, Ms. Shepherd." A young male doctor came in to view. "I'm going to go get your parents, but I need to take the tube out first. Can you relax for me?" Kalen nodded and the doctor pulled the tube out. Kalen gagged and coughed, her hand going to her throat. "Are you alright?"

Kalen nodded and sat up. "What was the tube for?"

"Just a precaution. You stopped breathing during the surgery, so your parents asked that we leave it in."

"Surgery?" Kalen asked her voice raspy.

"Yeah. I'm going to get your parents, okay?" Kalen nodded and watched him open the door to her room. "Dr. Shepherd…?"

Both Derek and Addison looked up but Addison spoke first. "Is she awake?"

George nodded. "Yes." Addison jumped to her feet, racing in to the room.

"Thanks O'Malley." Derek said. George nodded and Derek followed Addison in to the room and shut the door behind him.

"How are you feeling?" Addison asked, sitting down next to the bed.

"A little out of the loop." Kalen said, her voice croaking. "Why was I in surgery?"

"You had a spinal tumor." Kalen's eyes widened and Derek sat down on the edge of the bed and put one hand on her leg. "You're fine. It was benign, and Dr. Jamison removed it without any major complications…"

"I stopped breathing. That's not a major complication to you?"

Derek sighed. "Kalen…"

"Why did you operate?"

"Because I'm your father…"

"No you're not." Derek looked pained. "Not biologically."

"I wanted to." He said his voice shaky. "Richard wouldn't let me." Kalen nodded. "Dr. Jamison is a good doctor though, K."

"Am I going to be able to play soccer?" Kalen asked. She was trying to pull of the I'm-calm-cool-collected-and-pissed-at-you attitude that she had inherited from Addison, but her voice was shaky.

"We don't know yet, K." Addison said, rubbing her hand on Kalen's leg. Addison felt Kalen tense at her initial touch. "Baby, what's wrong?"

Kalen sighed. "Nothing. Look, I know you guys are worried about me, but can I be alone for a little? I just need to…"

Addison nodded and kissed Kalen on the forehead. "Yeah. We'll be right outside if you need us." Kalen smiled as Derek squeezed her hand and they left.

"Look, they don't know that you're here. You should wait until they go home, or…"

"Too late." Derek snapped, shutting the door to Kalen's room. "What are you doing here?"

"I called him." Izzie said, looking down. "Kalen's phone rang earlier, and it was him, so I figured that he might want to know."

"Can I see her?" Mark asked. "She probably won't want me to stay, but…"

"She doesn't want to see anyone right now." Addison said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Addie…she doesn't want to see us." Derek sighed. "I don't want you here, but this isn't about me." Derek stepped away from the door, taking Addisons hand and pulling her with him. "Go ahead."

Mark smiled. "Thank you." Derek nodded and then cringed as the door closed.

"Why did you do that?" Addison snapped, dropping his hand.

"Addison…"

"I don't want him in there."

"I don't either, but Kalen might."

"I don't care."

Derek sighed. "Yes you do." Addison looked down. "Addie…"

"Why does she hate me, Derek?"

"She doesn't hate you."

"She tensed when I touched her." Addison took a shaky breath. "I know I screwed up, but I never thought…what happened?"

Derek pulled Addison in to a hug. "I don't know, baby. I don't know."

* * *

Kalen stared. "What are you doing here?" 

"Dr. Stevens called me." Kalen smiled. Thank God for Izzie. "Are you okay?"

Kalen shrugged. "The Drs. Shepherd say that I'm fine."

"Kalen…"

Kalen looked down. "I don't know. This is like the top of the heap. Everything has fallen apart in the last year, Mark. Not to mention, you were my constant and now I don't even have you."

Mark sat down on the edge of the bed and took hold of her hand. "You have me, K. You will always have me." Kalen managed a weak smile. "What happened?"

"Apparently I had a spinal tumor." Mark looked panicked. "It was benign, and it's gone, but I don't know if I'm going to be able to play soccer…soccer is the only thing that I've never screwed up." Kalen began to cry softly. "If I don't have soccer, I don't know what I'm going to do. I'm pretty much going to be the most fucked up person ever…"

"Don't say that." Mark breathed. "Do you remember when we watched _Love Actually_?" Kalen nodded, wiping the tears from her face and Mark held his hands up as if he was holding a sign. "To me you are perfect." Kalen laughed at the gesture and Mark put his hands down. "No matter how many mistakes you make, you are the most perfect creature I've ever known."

Kalen shook her head. "I'm not. You're kidding yourself."

Mark lifted her chin so that their eyes met. "I'm not kidding myself, and I'm not wrong. I see you, K. Without the mistakes and the negative attitude." Tears began to stream down her face, and Mark moved so that he was sitting next to her. Hugging her to him, he kissed the top of her head. "Everyone is flawed, K. I'm flawed…you know that." Kalen cracked a smile. "The point is that when someone loves you, they see past the flaws and right to the heart of you. And Kalen…I love you. I love you even when you're sick and look disgusting." Kalen managed a giggle and then leaned in to his chest. In the comfort of his arms, Kalen began to sob. Soft tears ran down Marks face. He hated seeing her this way.

* * *

45 minutes later, Mark left her room, a smile on his tear-stained face. Derek and Addison looked up as he came out of the room. 

"She wants to see you, Derek." Mark said his voice low and throaty. "She asked me to send you in."

Derek managed a smile. "Thanks." Mark nodded and Derek went in to Kalen's room cautiously.

"Is she okay?" Addison asked. Mark nodded. "Does she hate me?"

Mark laughed. "God, Addie, no. She hates herself for hurting you. She doesn't want to hurt you again."

"Does she get that I'm going to love her no matter what?"

Mark shrugged. "I think so. She wants to see you too; she just asked to see Derek first."

Addison nodded and leaned back in the chair she was sitting in. "Okay."

Mark placed one hand on her shoulder comfortingly. "It'll be fine."

Addison sighed. "I hope you're right."

* * *

"I'm sorry." Kalen said, breaking the silence she and Derek had been sitting in for the past few minutes. "I shouldn't have said that you aren't my father. Because you are. Even if it's not biologically." 

"You were upset." Derek said, briefly touching her hand. He made note of the fact that she didn't tense or flinch.

"That doesn't make it okay. I was just nervous…you're really the only person I choose to trust with my spine."

Derek laughed. "We didn't have much of a choice. I tried to fight Richard on it, but he wouldn't let me do anything." Derek smiled. "Although I did look at your file. You should be able to play soccer again, as long as you rest up and take it slow at the beginning of the season."

"Really?" Derek nodded and Kalen grinned. "That's fantastic."

Derek nodded. "So…I don't want to ruin the good mood, but I want to ask about Mark." Kalen nodded. "Is this thing with him over?"

"What would you do if I said that it wasn't?"

Derek sighed. "I don't know. I love you, Kalen, and the fact that you're dating Mark isn't going to change that, but it would take a lot of getting used to."

Kalen nodded. "Well, I don't know if it's over or not. I haven't decided yet."

Derek took a deep breath. "Will you talk to me about it first? I just…I want you to be happy, K, but I don't want you to get hurt."

Kalen smiled. "I know, Daddy. And yes, I'll talk to you."

Derek smiled. "Good. I'm glad. I wanted to apologize too, Kalen. I shouldn't have left like that." Kalen nodded, tears coming to her eyes. "I was upset, and I wasn't thinking about anyone but myself."

"You didn't say goodbye." Kalen whispered. "I didn't know you had left the state until Richard called me." Derek cringed. He hadn't known that. "I don't think Mom knew either. It's not that you left…I understand why you left, but…you didn't tell anyone that you were leaving…you just left."

Derek nodded. "I know, honey, and I'm sorry. I really am."

Kalen shrugged. "It's over. I just missed you."

Derek smiled, and squeezed Kalen's hand, placing his head on her legs. "I missed you too."

* * *

"Dr. Sloan, are you okay?" Izzie Stevens sat down next to Mark, who was curled up in the corner of an on-call room, taking slow deep breaths. 

"Yeah, Dr. Stevens. I just needed to take a deep breath." Mark looked up. "This thing with Kalen is killing me. I don't know if I could take it if she told me no."

"No?" Izzie asked, sitting down on the floor next to him.

"I asked her to come back to New York and move in with me. She said that she'd think about it. She's coming back to New York…but I don't know if she'll take me up on the offer." Mark sighed. "Her parents' opinion is pretty important to her."

"She seems pretty close to Addison."

Mark nodded. "They're best friends. Which is amazing, since Addison hates her mother."

"Look, Dr. Sloan, my mother once told me something that I'll never forget. It didn't work for me, but I have a feeling that it might work for you." Mark raised his eyebrows. "Just wait it out. If she loves you, she'll come back to you."

Mark smiled. "Kalen and I watch _Love Actually_ all the time, and you know what her favorite line is?" Izzie shook her head and Mark took a deep breath. "The thing about romance is people only get together right at the very end."

**Hope you guys liked it! I know some of you are opposed to this Kalen/Mark thing, but don't freak out, yet, okay? They aren't definitely going to end up together…..**


	8. Somewhere Only We Know

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Somewhere Only We Know"**

_Oh, simple thing, where have you gone?  
__I'm getting old and I need something to rely on.  
__So tell me when you're gonna let me in,  
__I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin.  
__And if you have a minute why don't we go,  
__Talk about it somewhere only we know?  
__This could be the end of everything.  
__So why don't we go, somewhere only we know,  
__Somewhere only we know. –  
_"_Somewhere Only We Know"  
__By Keane_

Derek sat and watched his daughter sleep with a heavy heart. He's spent the last 19 years wanting her to be happy, and his fear was that she was…just with the wrong person. Kalen and Mark had always had a close relationship; Derek had just never realized that it could get to this point. As he watched her chest rise and fall, all he could remember was the day that changed his life.

_Addison was pacing the kitchen, and there was nothing Derek could do to calm her down. Kalen had left as soon as they had told her that Derek wasn't really her father. She'd been so upset, and she'd been at Mark's for the last week. They'd tried everything to get her to come back, including telling Mark not to feed her, but nothing had worked. She wouldn't talk to Addison on the phone or even acknowledge them when they stopped by. Addison hadn't slept in 6 days._

"_Addie, honey, sit down. You need to relax."_

"_My child is at someone else's home, Derek. And she hates me!"_

"_She doesn't hate you." Derek said, taking Addisons hands and looking in to her eyes. "She hates me." All Addison could do was shake her head before bursting in to tears and collapsing in Derek's arms. It was then that there was a knock on the door. Addison jumped and Derek moved towards the door, Addisons hand gripped tightly in his. When they opened it, Mark was standing on the porch, a sleeping ten-year-old in his arms._

"_She woke up asking for her mother." He said, moving past Derek and placing Kalen on the couch. "And then she fell asleep on the way here." Addison stood frozen by the door and watched as Mark softly let go of Kalen's head. Kalen shifted and stirred awake, her eyes adjusting to the light._

"_Mommy?" Addison dropped Derek's hand and raced to Kalen's side, pulling the girl in to a tight hug. Soft tears were running down Addisons face as she lifted Kalen and carried her up the stairs._

"_Thank you." Derek said his voice soft._

_Mark nodded. "What are best friends for?" Derek smiled. "She'll be fine, Derek. She was upset, that's all…but she'll be just fine."_

_Derek nodded. "I certainly hope so." Mark gave Derek a pat on the shoulder and left the brownstone, heading back in to the late night rain. Derek took a deep breath and began to turn off the lights downstairs. He had just hit the last light when Addison came to the bottom of the steps._

"_She wants to talk to you." Addison said, smiling. Derek's heart stopped and he pulled Addison in to a tight hug, kissing her forehead before heading up the stairs to Kalen's room. The bedside table lamp was on, letting a soft glow in to the room, and Kalen was curled up on her side, facing the closet._

"_K?" Kalen looked up, smiling. "Mommy said you wanted to talk to me."_

_Kalen nodded. "Yeah." Her voice cracked from the tears she'd obviously been crying, and Derek sat down on the edge of the bed. "Um…can I still call you Daddy?"_

_Derek's heart broke. "Of course you can." Tears filled his eyes as he watched Kalen's face crinkle as if she was about to cry. "Kalen…"_

"_But…you said that I had another Daddy…"_

_Derek slid closer to Kalen, taking her small hand in his. "You do, but…honey, I love you so much, and I want you to call me Daddy. If you want to."_

_Kalen nodded, the tears now overflowing. "I want to."_

_Derek smiled. "Okay." Derek moved so that he was sitting next to Kalen, and pulled her on to his lap. "Do you understand why you have two Dads?"_

_Kalen nodded. "Mommy loved him a lot, but he just couldn't be around…and then she met you, and you fell in love with her and me."_

_Derek smiled. "That's right." Derek hugged Kalen to him, kissing the top of her head. "That's so right."_

"_Daddy?" Derek's heart pained as she tentatively looked up at him. "What about Mark?"_

_Derek shrugged. "What about Mark?"_

"_How…is he…?"_

"_Mark is your friend, K. He's my best friend, and he can be yours too."_

_Kalen smiled. "Really?" Derek nodded and Kalen let out a deep breath, placing her head on his chest. "I love you, Daddy."_

_Derek smiled, making eye contact with Addison, who was now standing in the doorway. "I love you too, K."_

"Derek. Derek." Addison's voice brought him out of his reverie, and he smiled. "Are you alright?"

Derek nodded. "Yeah."

"Is she…?"

"She's fine. She wanted to talk to you, but she fell asleep."

Addison nodded. "Okay."

Derek stood, wrapping Addison in a hug. "Addie…"

"I just want her to be okay."

"She's a tough kid. She'll be okay." Addison nodded. "What else?"

Addison blushed. Sometimes she hated that he could read her so well. "Are we going to be okay?"

Derek stepped back, looking in to Addison's eyes. "We're going to be just fine. I love you so much…" Addison smiled. "We're going to be fine."

"I love you too, Derek." Derek smiled and kissed her softly before leading her out of the room.

* * *

Kalen awoke later that night and found Mark sitting next to the bed, gripping her hand. 

"You're awake." He said, grinning. Kalen nodded. "How are you feeling?"

Kalen shrugged. "Fine, I guess." Mark nodded. "I haven't decided yet, so don't even think about asking."

Mark laughed. "I wasn't going to. I was going to say that your parents went home and I wasn't sure if you wanted me to stay."

Kalen smiled and shifted to make room for Mark on the bed. "Stay."

Mark sat down next to her, lacing their fingers together. "Okay." Kalen leaned her head against Mark's shoulder and let out a sigh of comfort, as if she was where she had always needed to be. Mark kissed the top of her head and closed his eyes, relishing in the feeling of her body against his.

"How alone are we?" Kalen asked a hint of something Mark hadn't heard in a long time in her voice.

"Stevens is the only intern on call…and I already asked her to not come in here unless I didn't stay." Kalen smiled. "Why?"

Kalen shrugged. "I don't know. I like being alone with you." Mark smiled and brought their hands up to his lips, kissing her fingers. Kalen snuggled in to his side, and Mark knew that it was going to be tough to keep his hands off of her. After a few minutes, Mark couldn't control himself. He let go of her hand and let his hand drift lower down her body. As his hand grazed her lower region, Kalen let out a gasp of surprise. "Mark…"

He ripped his hand away as if he had just touched something forbidden. "I'm sorry, I…"

"No." Kalen smiled. "It's okay. You just surprised me, that's all." Mark smiled and let his hand go back to its original position, getting both a gasp and a squirm out of Kalen. Mark lifted her chin with his other hand and kissed her soundly, threading his free hand in to her hair. Mark moved so that he was straddling her, one hand on each side of her body. Their tongues dueled feverishly as Kalen slid Marks white t-shirt over his head. Kalen was still in a hospital gown, giving Mark easy access to all of her curves that he loved so much. As Kalen undid his belt, Mark froze, receiving a groan from Kalen. "What?"

"Are you sure about this?" Kalen stared at him. "We're in your parents' hospital, we've only done this once; you just got out of surgery…"

"Mark." Kalen snapped her lips red and swollen from his kisses. "I'm sure." Mark cocked one eyebrow. "I'm serious."

He smiled. "Okay." Mark leaned down to kiss her again, one hand on her breast as she undid his belt. As Kalen's hands slid around his waist, Mark realized that sex in the hospital had never felt so good.

* * *

Izzie Stevens made her way in to Kalen's room to check on her after seeing Mark slip out the door just before 10 a.m. Kalen and Mark were lucky the Shepherds hadn't shown up. Izzie wasn't stupid. She knew what they had been doing. 

"How are you feeling?" Izzie asked, stepping in to the room.

Kalen smiled. "Good."

Izzie laughed, moving to check her vitals. "Yeah. I'm sure."

Kalen's eyes widened. "Were we loud?"

Izzie grinned. "No. But I'm not stupid. Mark asked me not to check on you unless he left the room…" Kalen blushed. "You're just lucky your parents didn't show up."

Kalen nodded. "I know. They would have killed both of us."

Izzie nodded. "Yeah. Have you talked to your Mom at all yet?"

Kalen shook her head. "Not really. I fell asleep after talking to my Dad yesterday, and when I woke up, they were gone."

"Today would be the perfect time…"

Kalen sighed. "I know."

"I'm just saying."

Kalen nodded. "Will you send her in when she gets here?"

Izzie smiled. "Sure. We'll have Dr. Bailey check, but you might be able to go home today." Kalen smiled and then looked towards the door as it opened, revealing her mother. "Okay, well…I'll just leave you two alone." Izzie winked at Kalen and left, shutting the door behind her.

"Are you doing alright?" Addison asked, sitting down next to the bed.

"Yeah. I'm okay." Kalen took a deep breath. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For not telling you about Hadley…for hiding so much from you…and for the way I've been treating you while I've been in Seattle. You don't deserve that…I was being a brat."

"Everyone's entitled to be a brat sometimes." Addison said, grinning. "Don't worry about it. What I want to know is why you seem to hate me so much?"

"I don't hate you." Kalen said, looking down. "I couldn't hate you. I just…it's so hard for me to tell you this, but…" Kalen took a deep breath. "I think I might be in love with him."

"With Mark?" Kalen nodded. "Baby…"

"And it's hard because…because of everything that happened. I don't think Daddy will ever be able to get past it, and I…I need him to."

Addison nodded. "You want to be with Mark?" Kalen nodded her head down. "Well, Kalen, it's your choice…"

"But you don't like it, and Daddy hates it…"

"It's less about what your father and I want than it is about what you want." Kalen sighed. "Honey, if you love him…"

"I don't know if I do or not. I can't tell."

Addison smiled. "You want to know how I was able to tell that I loved your father?" Kalen nodded. "He was all I could think about. My parents didn't like Derek right away either…but I didn't care. Every waking moment I thought about him, I dreamt about him…he made me feel special, he made me feel beautiful…and I never wanted to leave his side."

Kalen smiled. "I…"

"What about Mark? How does he make you feel?"

Kalen grinned, tears forming in her eyes. "He makes me feel like I'm perfect, like I've never screwed up or made any mistakes, and like all I need in life is him. He makes me feel like I don't have to prove anything to anyone and like I can do anything…and I never want to leave his side."

Addison smiled. As much as she didn't like who the guy was, she wanted to see her daughter in love. That was the most important. "I think you love him, K."

Kalen nodded. "I think I do too."

Addison smiled. "It's a little weird for both your father and I, and it might be that way for a while…but we want you to be happy. That is what's most important to us." Kalen smiled. "We love you, honey. No matter what." Kalen grinned and Addison stood, pulling her in to a hug. "Now…what else have I missed?"

Kalen smiled. She loved being able to talk to her mother. Addison was her best friend, and not having her for the last year had been harder on Kalen than anyone realized. "Well…"

* * *

Mark paced outside Derek's office, unsure if he was going to be able to go in. Derek was watching him through the window, and he finally stood and opened the door, startling Mark. 

"Do you want to talk to me?"

Mark nodded. "Not if you're going to hit me."

Derek sighed. "I won't hit you." Mark reluctantly stepped in to Derek's office, sitting down across from the desk as Derek shut the door. "So what's going on?" Derek asked, sitting down in the chair behind the desk.

Mark took a deep breath. "I know you don't want to hear this, but…I'm in love with your daughter. I really am."

Derek nodded. "I just…I don't know if I can believe you. After everything…"

"Derek, I love Addison, but not like I love Kalen. Addison is one of my best friends, and I thought that I loved her, but I was wrong. Addison was the more…realistic choice; I guess…not that I really ever had her to choose from." Mark avoided eye contact with Derek. "I just didn't seem like Kalen would ever be interested, and I…I don't know what exactly I was thinking. But I know now that I've been in love with Kalen for a long time…she used to be my best friends daughter…and about a year and a half ago, she became this perfect creature…this image of everything I had ever wanted…but she was too young."

"She's still too young." Derek said, sighing. "But…I have this feeling that Kalen loves you too, and I want her to be happy." Derek shook his head. "I don't really care if you're happy, but…Kalen is my daughter, and if you make her happy…then I guess at some point I'm going to have to forgive you and get used to it." Mark smiled. "Just don't expect it to happen soon. It's going to take me a while."

Mark nodded. "You have no idea what this means…to me, and to Kalen."

Derek shrugged. "Whatever."

Mark grinned and stood. "Thank you, Derek." Derek shrugged and nodded, and Mark left the room, sliding past Addison with a smile on his face.

"What was that?" She asked, leaning against the wall facing Derek.

"He loves our daughter." Derek said standing and making his way over to Addison. After pulling her in to his arms, he leaned his forehead against hers.

"And our daughter loves him." Addison said, sighing. "Are we going to be okay with this?"

Derek sighed. "I think we're going to have to be."

* * *

"Everything looks good." Miranda said, scanning Kalen's vitals and her chart. "There is one thing that intrigues me, though." 

"What?" Izzie asked, not sure what Bailey was talking about.

"Well, at around 9:00 last night, and then again at about 2:00 this morning, Kalen's heart beat raised rapidly…" Kalen blushed and looked down, letting out a low giggle. "What's so funny?" Bailey asked. Kalen made eye contact with Izzie, who shrugged. It was then that Mark walked in to the room. Kalen made eye contact with him and smiled widely, her eyes giving her away. "Oh hell no." Bailey stood between Kalen and Mark, trying to get Kalen's attention. "Y'all did not have sex in this hospital bed." Kalen giggled and looked down, and behind Miranda, Mark was grinning widely. "This is completely ridiculous. Obviously you're fine." Miranda sighed, grabbing Kalen's charts. "I'll get your parents to sign your release forms." Kalen grinned as Miranda left the room, only then noticing that Mark was holding a bouquet of pink roses.

"Who are those for?" Izzie asked, grinning.

"Derek. I need to win him over." Kalen laughed as Mark set them on her lap. "Obviously not."

Kalen smiled. "Thank you." Mark nodded. "So…"

Mark turned to Izzie, smiling. "Dr. Stevens, could you possibly leave us alone for a few minutes? There's something I need to talk to Kalen about."

Izzie nodded. "Sure." Izzie left the room, shutting the door softly behind her.

"What is it?" Kalen asked, nervous.

"Kalen…I need to ask you something…"

* * *

Izzie stood at the front desk, flipping through a different chart, when Derek and Addison walked up to the front desk. 

"How's Kalen?" Derek asked, leaning against the desk.

"Good. Dr. Bailey is drawing up release forms…she can go home today."

Addison smiled. "That's fantastic. Is she in there by herself?"

Izzie shook her head. "Dr. Sloan is in there with her…" It was at that moment that the door to Kalen's room opened and Mark came flying out,heading down the hallin the opposite direction.

"What…?" Addison moved to the doorway of Kalens room and found Kalen huddled in the chair next to her bed, sobbing. "Kalen…?"

"What happened?" Derek asked, coming in to the room. "What did he do? Did he hurt you?"

Kalen shook her head, looking up. "I think I may have hurt him."

**Okay. That's it. Read and Review please! – Mel.**


	9. Good Little Girls

**BTW: There's some M-rated stuff at the end...so be aware...**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Good Little Girls"**

_She's her Momma's baby; she's her Daddy's pride an' joy.  
They've kept her under wraps, she ain't been hangin' out,  
with any ugly actin' boys.  
Hardly ever been kissed, twenty years of innocence,  
just what I'm lookin' for.  
I wanna be the man that's holdin' her hand,  
When she can't hold it back anymore  
Good little girls make some mighty wild women,  
Been savin' it up since the very beginnin':  
When they fall in love, they wanna take it to the limit.  
Good little girls make some mighty wild women. –  
_"_Good Little Girls"  
__By Blue County_

Mark slid down the wall in the stairwell, fighting tears. He wasn't a crier. That wasn't who he was. But he couldn't imagine his life without her. Not anymore.

"_Look, Andrew, you're a sweetheart, but you work with my parents." Kalen shifted from one foot to the other, trying to get out of the situation she was in. She was barely 18, and already interns that worked with her parents were trying to get her to go out with them. It wasn't that she was virginal and scared; it was just weird. "I'm sorry."_

"_Not even for dinner once? Come on, Kalen."_

_Kalen shook her head. "I'm sorry. I can't." Kalen turned and walked away, her face red._

"_Are you alright?" Mark stepped out of the shadows, getting a shriek and a smack from Kalen. "He didn't bother you, did he?"_

_Kalen shook her head. "No, Mark, I'm okay."_

"_Are you sure?" Kalen nodded. "What are you doing here?"_

_Kalen shrugged. "I was hoping for lunch, but apparently they're too busy even today."_

"_Today?" Kalen nodded, tears forming in her eyes. "Oh, it's your birthday, right?" Kalen nodded. "Well I know I'm no Addison, but I've got time for lunch." Kalen smiled, nodding. "Okay. Hold on." Mark headed back down the hall, setting the charts he was holding on the counter._

"_Hey, Dr. Sloan…you're friends with mini-Shepherd…how about hooking me up?"_

_Mark scowled. "Andrew, if you go anywhere near that girl, I will beat you to a pulp and then I'll sick her father on you."_

"_Shepherd is too busy to notice. He'll ask you to handle it." Andrew grinned. "Isn't today her birthday?" Mark nodded. "And who's taking her out to lunch? Not her parents…"_

"_Just keep away from her." Mark snapped, serious. "She's a good kid."_

"_Yeah well…" Andrew grinned devilishly. "Good little girls make some mighty wild women." Mark lunged at the intern, who raced down the hall. Mark took a deep breath and headed back towards Kalen, slipping his arm around her shoulder and leading her out of the hospital._

* * *

_Kalen sat in her room that evening, awaiting the arrival of her still MIA parents. She'd spent a large part of the afternoon with Mark, but she hadn't been able to get ahold of either one of her parents all day._

"_Hey." Kalen looked up and grinned as both her mother and father stood in the doorway, smiles on their faces. "How was your day?" Addison asked, leaning against the door jam._

"_Fine. I went to lunch with Mark."_

_Derek smiled. "That's good." He grinned. "Well…sleep well." Addison nodded in agreement and they left the doorway together, practically holding each other up. It was all Kalen could do not to break down. She immediately reached for her cell phone and dialed an all too familiar number._

"_Hello?"_

"_Hi." The tears in her voice were evident and Mark knew something was wrong right away. "They…"_

"_Oh Kalen…did they forget."_

_It was then that Kalen broke. "Yeah." She managed to spit out, tears streaming down her face._

"_I'll be there soon. We'll go do something, okay?"_

_Kalen nodded. "Okay." Kalen hung up the phone and went in to the bathroom that was attached to her room. She wiped her tears and touched up her makeup, pulling her red hair in to a ponytail. She could hear the shower running down the hall, as well as the TV on, which meant that either only one of her parents was taking a shower, or they wanted her to think that. She didn't really care. She waited a few minutes before slipping out of her room and shutting the door silently before making her way down the stairs. She slipped out the front door, the heat of the warm July night making her feel just the slightest bit better. Mark pulled up a few minutes later, and she raced down the stairs of the brownstone and slid in to the passenger seat._

"_Where to my dear?"_

_Kalen shrugged. "I don't know…you grew up here, what did you do on your 18th birthday?"_

_Mark laughed. "I went clubbing."_

"_Are you up to that?"_

_He grinned. "Only for you."_

* * *

_Five hours later, Kalen slipped in the front door of the brownstone, only to find her father standing in the kitchen, an angry and worried look on his face._

"_I called you six times, Kalen. Your mother and I were very worried." Kalen stared at him for a minute and then kept walking. Derek followed her through the house. "Kalen Michelle…" Kalen walked up the stairs and past Addison, who was waiting at the top of the stairs._

"_Kalen, where were you?" Addison asked, the worry in her voice evident._

"_With Mark." She said, reaching her door. "He actually cares." She snapped, glaring at Addison._

"_Don't talk to your mother like that."_

"_Don't tell me what to do." Kalen snapped, turning to face Derek. "Don't."_

"_I can tell you whatever I want." Derek said, getting angry._

_Kalen shook her head. "Not anymore."_

"_What does that mean?" Derek asked._

"_It means; I'm 18. Keep your 'don't talk to your mother like that's and your 'we were very worried's to yourself. I don't have to care anymore." Kalen slammed the door to her room as Addison let out a very audible gasp._

_Derek turned. "What?"_

"_Her birthday." Addison whispered, panic on her face. "We forgot her birthday. It's today." Derek's face went white and his body slumped. "I can't believe we forgot."_

"_I…I feel horrible. I didn't even think..." Derek let out a sigh. "No wonder she's so upset."_

"_18 is big too. God…" Addison moved to the door and reached for the handle, only to find it locked. "Damn it. I forgot there was a lock on there." She reached to knock on the door when the phone rang. Derek snagged it from the bedroom and came back in to the hallway before answering it._

"_Hello?"_

"_Figure it out yet?"_

"_Mark…" Derek hit speaker phone and leaned against the wall next to Addison. "Why didn't you say anything?"_

"_It's not my job to remind you that it's your daughters birthday, Derek." Mark laughed slightly. "Not to mention the both of you were in surgeries all day. Hello Addison."_

"_Hi." She said sheepishly. "I feel horrible. Is there anything I can do?"_

_Mark sighed. "I don't know. She's pretty upset. I managed to cheer her up a little, mostly because my dancing skills are rather lacking, but you can try talking to her…I don't know, guys. You've forgotten a lot recently. You've put your careers before Kalen…that's a hard thing to fix."_

"_It certainly is." Kalen's voice startled all three of the adults._

"_How much of this have you heard?" Mark asked._

_Kalen laughed. "The whole thing. You're on speaker phone dumbass."_

_Mark laughed. "Fine. Well you answer their question then."_

"_I can't." Kalen said, sighing. "I'm still pissed."_

"_Rightfully so." Mark said, the smile evident in his voice. "But you could be adult about it and answer their question."_

_Kalen sighed. "Goodnight Mark."_

_He laughed. "Goodnight." Mark hung up the phone and Kalen leaned against the door jam._

"_Can we do anything?" Addison asked, pain evident in her voice and on her face._

_Kalen shrugged. "I don't know. I'll get back to you." Kalen went back in to her room, shutting the door silently and leaving Addison and Derek out in the hall._

If Mark remembered correctly, it wasn't long after that event that Kalen went "rebel child" on the Shepherds, though they basically failed to notice, and then not long after that was when Mark fell for her. He hung his head. He's always known how special she was, he just hadn't been able to acknowledge it as much as he would have liked to, because Kalen was focused on her parents. The fact that Kalen had turned 18 just before her senior year gave her more freedom than most of her friends, and Mark had done a lot of designated driving during the fall of that school year. And now she was almost 21; just under 2 months away, and that scared him.

"Hey." Derek sat down next to Mark, startling both of them a little. "You alright?"

"I shouldn't have asked. I knew she was going to say no."

"She's 20, Mark. She's not ready for marriage. Not yet."

"She's almost 21."

Derek cringed. "Don't remind me. That scares me."

Mark looked over at Derek, seeing the best friend he'd once had. "I don't know what I'm going to do without her…"

"Regardless of her age, she loves you. I know she does…look, I had to ask Addison twice, remember?" Mark nodded. "Kalen is a lot like her mother."

Mark laughed. "Yeah, she is."

"Give her time. She might come around."

Mark smiled. "Thanks, man."

Derek sighed. "Hey, what are friends for?"

* * *

Kalen stared at her mother. "You said no?" 

"The first time, yeah. You were almost two…so Derek and I had only been together a little over a year…I wasn't ready to get married. Not in the slightest. So I told him that I wanted to be with him, but I wasn't ready to get married yet. And it was hard, for a while. But it got better. And when he asked me again when you were 5…we were both ready."

"I'm worried that if I make him wait three years…he won't want to."

"If he loves you, he will. That's how I knew Derek and I were right together. He was willing to wait as long as I needed him to…" Kalen nodded. "Honey, if you're not ready, you're not ready. He's not going to force you."

"I know that…but I feel like I hurt him…"

"You didn't." Mark stepped through the doorway, Derek right behind him. "At first you did, but your Dad helped me realize that you're just not ready…and I can't push you." Kalen stared at Derek.

"K, I want you to be happy. You know that." Kalen stood from the chair that she was in and wrapped Derek in a hug. "K…"

"Thank you." Her comment was genuine, and made Derek's stomach drop.

"Come with me." He said, taking her by the hand. Kalen was now dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, so she glanced back at her mother and then followed Derek down the hall, her bare feet padding on the floor.

"Daddy, where are we going?"

"You'll see." Derek led her down the hall and in to his office, shutting the door. "I wanted to talk to you alone."

Kalen raised her eyebrows. "Okay…"

"Kalen, honey, remember how you said you would talk to me about the Mark thing?" She nodded. "Well, I'm going to do it for you. Part of me still hates him, and that might not change for a while, but your happiness is more important to me. Way more. And if you want to move in with him, and eventually marry him…then do it."

Kalen looked taken aback. "Dad…"

"I'm serious. Since he got here, I've been remembering events where your Mom and I let you down, and Mark was always there for you. Always. Not as my friend, but as yours, and he's still going to be…and he obviously makes you happy." Kalen nodded. "Well, I want you to be happy. I know I've said that a lot…but it's true." Kalen hugged him again, a smile on her face. "Now go back to that room and tell him whatever you feel like telling him. And send your mother down here." Kalen nodded, planted a kiss on Derek's cheek and headed back towards the hospital room. Not a minute later, Addison came sauntering in to his office.

"Kalen said…" Before Addison could finish her sentence, Derek had shut the door and slammed her against it, pressing his lips to hers. Without protest, Addison began to kiss back, running her fingers through Dereks in-desperate-need-of-a-hair-cut-hair.

"I am so sorry." He said, leaning his forehead against hers. "I don't know why it took me so long." Addison cocked one eyebrow, confused. "You're amazing, and I am so lucky to have you. You're so special…"

"Like stop-eating-the-past-special?" She asked, joking.

"Add…"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She said, laughing. "Feel free to finish."

"I just…it took the way Mark talked about Kalen to make me realize I have what he has…this perfect creature that is only mine…" Addison smiled. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Derek." Addison said, her voice cracking. Derek pressed his lips to hers again, this time lifting her body so that her legs wrapped around his waist. The curtains were already drawn, so Derek undid the buttons on Addisons shirt, sliding it off her shoulders and placing his hands gently around her waist. Addison slid his scrub top over his head, tracing his muscles with her hands as his slid further down her waist and one slid under the hem of her skirt. Addison let out a low moan as Derek's hand brushed her already swollen clit, making her legs shake more than they already were. "Derek…" She hissed, slamming the palm of one hand softly against the door as his fingers dipped inside of her, making a thrusting motion she hadn't expected. He hadn't done that in a long time. "Derek, stop." She whispered, almost inaudibly. He just shook his head and continued the steady motion of his fingers. Her hand balled in to a fist, and it was all she could do not to slam it in to the door as he hit her G-spot time and time again. "Stop." She said, gripping the frame of the door. "I'm going to explode."

"I know." Derek whispered, the lust in his voice almost bringing Addison over the top in and of itself. She shook her head but he ignored her, thrusting his fingers deep inside her. She was on the verge, he could feel it, but he needed her to come faster. He needed her. His free hand unzipped the back of her skirt and he removed his other hand from between her legs, sliding both the skirt and her panties down over her legs. Before Addison could stop him, his fingers began to thrust again, but this time the thumb and pointer finger of his spare hand were rubbing her clit, sliding it back and forth between them. Addisons breaths became labored, they were short and staggered, and Derek felt her muscles clench twice before she shrieked softly in to his neck and her juices flowed over his hand. Derek grinned and immediately unclasped her bra, both hands moving to her nipples, getting another moan from Addison almost immediately.

"You're killing me." She hissed, leaning against the door. Derek just grinned, thrusting his hips against her, and she finally removed her hands from their flattened place against the door and undid his belt, sliding his pants and boxers down his legs. He was more than ready for her and he immediately thrust inside of her. Addison slammed her head against the door, biting her lip as he began to thrust slow and deep, one hand massaging her swollen clit and the other teasing at her nipples; first one, then the other. "Derek…" He'd barely made a sound the whole time, but as she shifted so that he could thrust deeper, he groaned.

"You have no idea what you do to me. Damn it…" He braced himself against the door and she gripped his shoulders as he began to move at a fast steady pace. As if it was just like the first year of their marriage, they were in sync, moving together and eventually coming together, his forehead slamming in to the door, hers burying itself in Dereks shoulder. Not a word was spoken, Derek just held her to him; letting them both regain whatever strength it was they had left.

**Okay. So that was hot. If I do say so myself.**

**I dunno. I needed Addek sex, and it doesn't fit in Half Love right now…so there you go. Let me know what you guys think, 'kay?**

**Mel.**


	10. Call n' Return

**This one's for Kayli and Nat, who pestered. Here you go kids.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Call n' Return"**

_You promised me starry night skies  
They just remind me of your shinning bright eyes  
I'm missing your voice at night time  
This sepa-separation seem-seems a sad crime  
But don't don't don't think think that I forgot you  
__you you are are are oh so sweet uh- I I I -  
I know If only you were here  
(things would be more magical)  
If I were there  
(Right now would be more radical)  
You're so not near  
(I'm wishing I could place a call)  
and feel closer to you Oh –  
_"_Call n' Return"  
__By Hellogoodbye_

Kalen dangled her legs over the porch on the trailer, looked up in to the starry sky, and sighed. She was supposed to be in Seattle for four days. She'd stayed three weeks. She was doing her classes over the internet and via email, and it was driving her crazy. Post-season had started without her, Megan was freaking out, and Kalen still wasn't leaving for another three days. Richard had to okay her leaving. Well, actually, he had okayed her leaving, but her parents hadn't. And it was driving her nuts.

"K?" Derek came out on to the porch and sat down next to her. "Are you alright?"

"I want to go back to New York." She said, sighing. "I'm missing so much."

"Button, we just want you to be okay before you go back."

"I'm fine. Mark's in New York. He can take care of me if that's what you're worried about. But I want to be in my classes. I want to be on the soccer field."

"You can't play soccer yet, Kalen."

"Why not?" She snapped. "Because you don't want to have to make the trek to New York to make sure I'm okay if something happens? Richard said it was fine."

"Richard isn't your father."

"No, Richard's my doctor."

"That isn't the same thing." Kalen sighed and hopped of the edge of the deck in to the grass. "K…"

"I just want to be in New York, Daddy."  
Derek sighed. "You can leave in a couple of days." Derek stood and went back in to the trailer, upset.

Kalen felt horrible. "Daddy…" Kalen went back in to the trailer and sighed as she saw Derek lying on the bed, his eyes closed. "Dad." He opened his eyes and sat up. "It's not like I don't want to be around you and Mom. You understand that, right?" Derek nodded. "I just…I'm going to school in New York. My soccer team is in New York."

"Mark is in New York." Derek said, grimacing.

"I wasn't going to add that, but yeah." Kalen sat down on the edge of the bed. "That's where most of my life is."

"I know, Kalen, but your Mom and I just want you to be safe, and healthy before you go back."

Kalen nodded, lying down next to Derek. "I know, Dad."

"And when you do get back, promise me something?" Kalen cocked one eyebrow. "You'll call your mother and I more?"

Kalen grinned. "Yeah. As long as you call me too."

Derek smiled. "I will, Button." He pulled Kalen in to a hug. "I promise."

* * *

"Dr. Shepherd?" Alex Karev came down the hall, a grim look on his face. Seven a.m. did not look good on Alex. "There's a phone call for you on line one. Apparently you're not answering pages." 

Addison looked down at her pager and grimaced. "Oops. Sorry. Thanks, Dr. Karev." Alex nodded and left as Addison reached for the nearest phone. "This is Dr. Shepherd."

"Addison."

Addison smiled. "Evan. How are you?"

"I'm fine. Yourself?"

"I'm doing well. What's going on?"

"How's Kalen?"

Addison sighed. "She's fine. You know Evan, you can call her yourself."

"I needed to ask you something first."

"Okay…"

"Did she recently have a child?"

Addison froze. "How did you know that?"

"Liz and I were in Europe, hoping to adopt. Liz can't have kids, and it was taking too long in the states." Addison leaned against the wall. "There was a young American woman giving birth while we were there."

"What was the baby's name?"

"Hadley." Addison gasped. "It was Kalen."

"Yeah. How did you…?"

"The adoption agency told us she was from a prominent family in New York. A couple of surgeons, they told us. They said that the woman was in Europe to have the baby because her parents didn't know. When Liz asked what kind of surgeons the parents were, I just kind of…assumed. I was going to feel really bad if it wasn't her, but there aren't many married surgeons, one a neurosurgeon, one specializing in neonatology, with a 20-year-old daughter."

Addison laughed. "That's true. Why did you call me first though?"

"I didn't want to ask Kalen and have her freak out if it wasn't her."

"Well, you should call her."

"I will. Is she in New York?"

"No. She's here in Seattle. She was visiting and had some trouble."

"What kind of trouble?" Evan asked, panicking.

"She's fine, Evan. She has an ulcer. Overstressed, but who wouldn't be, with the year she's had."

"What do you mean?"

Addison sighed. "Derek and I moved to Seattle right before she left for Europe."

"You left her in New York?"

"She's almost 21, Evan. She can take care of herself. If I'd known she was pregnant, I would have stayed."

"Why did you guys move?"

Addison sighed. "It's a long story."

"Okay." Evan cleared his throat. "Is she with Derek right now?"

"Yes." Addison laughed. "You can still call her, Evan. He's not going to care."

Evan sighed. "Okay. I'll talk to you later, Add."

"Yeah. Later." Addison hung up the phone and sighed.

"Is everything alright?" Izzie Stevens came up behind Addison, a smile on her face.

"Yeah. I was just…" Addison sighed. "Talking to Kalen's birth father." Izzie nodded. "Apparently, he and his wife adopted Kalen's little girl."

Izzie raised her eyebrows. "Really? Weird."

Addison nodded. "Yeah. Weird."

* * *

Kalen fumbled around for her phone, falling off the side of the bed and letting out a shriek that woke Derek. 

"You alright?"

"Fine." Kalen groaned, laughing. She reached for her phone as Derek rolled over and sat up. "Hello?"

"Kalen, Hi."

"Evan." She stood up and walked out of the trailer. "Hi."

"How are you?"

"Oh. Fine. I'm going a little stir-crazy."

"Yeah. Your Mom said you're a little overstressed."

"Ugh." Kalen sat down on the edge of the porch and leaned against the post. "A lot has happened this year."

"You want to talk about it?"

Kalen sighed. "Not really."

"Okay. Well…I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Okay."

"Well, Liz and I just adopted a little girl."

"That's great, Evan."

"Her name is Hadley." Kalen froze. "Kalen…"

"Hadley?" She asked her voice cracking.

"Yeah. Liz and I were in Europe a couple of months ago, because the adoption process was taking so long in the states. The adoption agency said Hadley's mother wanted an American family to take her, and we were the only ones on the list." Kalen let out a small cry. "Kalen…"

"I can't believe you have her. That's amazing."

"You want to see her?"

Kalen smiled. "Really?"

"Kalen, when we figured out that you were the mother, Liz and I decided that we wanted you in her life. I wasn't in your life, and I still regret that, and I have this feeling that you'll regret it if you aren't in Hadley's. Am I right?"

Kalen took a deep breath. "Yeah."

"Okay. When are you headed back to New York?"

"In a couple of days."

"Why don't you take a detour to Boston? Come visit Liz and I, and see Hadley."

Kalen smiled. "Okay. Yeah."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Well, give me a call when you know your flight information. I'll see you in a few days."

"Bye." Kalen hung up the phone and smiled before getting to her feet and going back in to the trailer.

"Is everything alright?" Derek asked, pouring himself a cup of coffee, which Kalen promptly stole. "Hey! Your mother said no."

"My mothers not here." Kalen said, taking a gulp from the coffee cup and handing it back to Derek. "And everything's fine. You're never going to believe this." Derek raised his eyebrows as he sipped at the coffee. "Evan and Liz were the American couple that adopted Hadley."

Derek's jaw dropped. "You're kidding."

Kalen shook her head. "They want me to be a part of her life."

Derek smiled. "K, that's fantastic." Kalen nodded. "When are you going out there?"

"Oh. I'm going to swing by on my way out to New York. Just drop me off in Boston, baby." She said, grinning.

"Okay. We'll change your ticket." Kalen grinned and flopped down on the bed. "What are you doing?"

"Going back to sleep. It's 7:30."

"No. Come on. We're going running."

Kalen laughed. "Uh. No."

Derek set the coffee cup down on the counter and moved towards Kalen, pulling her in to a standing position. "Come on."

Kalen groaned. "Daddy, no…" Kalen fought against him, laughing. "I want to go back to bed."

"K…" At that moment Kalen's phone rang and Derek let go of her so that she could answer it.

"He's trying to make me go running."

Addison laughed. "So go running."

"Mom…."

"Kalen, humor your father."

"I am humoring him. He thinks I'm hilarious." Derek made a face and threw a shirt at Kalen. "Gross, Dad."

Addison laughed. "Have you talked to Evan?"

Kalen smiled. "Yeah. Did he call you first?"

"Yes. That man…"

"Has no balls."

"Kalen."

"Come on, Mom. He called you to make sure it was okay to talk to me about my child." Kalen hit the speaker phone button and set the phone on the bed. "That makes him…" Kalen pointed with a flourish to Derek, who spun around from the direction he was facing, clad only in running shorts.

"No balls!" Derek yelled, grinning. "What's that? 'No Balls' Mitchell? Oops. Evan. His name is Evan."

"Derek!" Addison snapped, getting aggravated. "As glad as I am to see, well hear, the two of you back to your old selves, you cannot call him that."

"We were just kidding Mom."

"Yeah. Take a chill pill Addie." Kalen's eyes popped and Derek's hand flew to his mouth. That was the one saying Addison hated, for whatever reason.

"You did not…" Kalen spit out, laughing. Kalen stumbled away from the bed, trying to hide her laughter.

"Kalen. Kalen! Take me off speaker phone." Addison snapped. Kalen reached for the phone and turned the speaker phone off, gingerly holding the phone up to her ear. "I'll talk to you later." Addison hung up the phone and Kalen burst in to laughter.

"Smooth. Real smooth."

Derek glared. "Now you're really going running with me." Kalen groaned and grabbed clothes from the bag sitting at the end of the bed. She slipped in to the bathroom to change and sighed. After that, she figured she could give him a run.

* * *

Two days later, Kalen was trying to get Addison to let go of her. This time, Derek was laughing. 

"Mom. I have to go. I'm going to miss my flight if you don't detach yourself from me."

Addison rolled her eyes. "I'm not allowed to hug you?"

"Not for five minutes."

Addison let go and stepped back. "Fine." Kalen grinned and gathered her bag from next to Derek.

"You'll call, right?" He asked.

Kalen wrapped him in a hug. "I'll call. If you call."

"I'll call." Derek let go of Kalen and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Have a good time in Boston."

Kalen smiled. "I will." Kalen hugged him one last time and then looked at Addison. "Don't get in to too much trouble."

"Well, you know me, K." Addison said, grinning. "Troublemaker."

Kalen laughed. "Don't I know it." Addison hugged Kalen one last time. "I love you Mom."

"I love you too baby." Addison let go and stepped in to Derek, letting him wrap his arms around her waist. "I'll talk to you later." Kalen nodded and headed through baggage claim. She waved one last time, but for the most part, it was just Derek and Addison watching her retreating form. "I wanted her to stay." Addison said. "I miss having her around, Derek."

Derek kissed the top of Addisons head. "Me too, baby, me too."

* * *

**Okay. I know it ended a little weird, but whatev.**

**Next time: Kalen visits Evan, and is joined by Mark, who Evan has a serious problem with. LOL.**

**REVIEW please! – Mel.**


	11. Pieces of the Sun

**OMG it's been forever since I've updated this but Gabbi practically begged me too so I am. We'll see how this goes lol.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Pieces of the Sun"**

_I don't wanna be the one  
I don't wanna be the one who tells you  
That I don't know what I've become, or what I want to be  
I know I'm always on the run  
I'm always searching for the final moment  
And I know that it will come  
Yes I will be free, I will be free  
Every little thing I promised you I'll make it come true  
I'm not ready to stop  
What is love, little pieces of the sun  
It's bound to touch you, if you're ready or not -  
"Pieces of the Sun"  
by Test Your Reflex_

Kalen stepped off the plane at JFK Airport and turned her iPod volume up as she threw her bag over her shoulder. She'd barely been in New York five minutes and she already felt more at home than she had in the last month. As she headed through the airport, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Pulling the brand new mint chocolate phone Evan had given her out of her pocket, Kalen sighed as she glanced at it. She pulled one earphone out of her ear and answered the phone. "Yes, I have arrived in New York, yes I have a ride from the airport, no, I did not let Evan buy me too many things."

Addison laughed. "Well I wasn't going to ask the last one, but alright."

"You don't have to call to check on me, you know. I'll be just fine, Mom."

"I know, Kay, but it's a mom thing, alright?"

"Yeah, alright."

"Who's picking you up?"

"Uh…Megan."

"Aka Mark?"

Kalen sighed. "Okay, yeah."

"You can tell me when you do things with Mark, you know. It's okay."

"Yeah, I guess."

"It is." Addison sighed. "Crap, I have to go. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye Mommy." Kalen hung up the phone and put her headphones back in, heading towards baggage claim. As she headed towards the carousel she glanced around for Mark, and, not seeing him, pulled sunglasses over her face and went to the carousel.

* * *

Mark came in to the airport with his sister at his side. "Denielle, I need you to be nice." 

"Mark, I am always nice."

"You are not. The last three girls I introduced you to, you tore to pieces."

"They were slutty, money grubbing women. This is different."

"She's young."

"I know, Mark. You told me."

"You've met her before."

"You told me that too Mark."

"Just please be nice. She's had a rough time lately, and I don't need this is be something that stresses her out even more."

Denielle sighed. "Mark, I promise to be nice. Just find her before the girl thinks you bailed on her."

He smiled and went in search of Kalen. He saw her standing at the carousel, sunglasses over her face, iPod headphones in her ear. She had her arms crossed over her chest, red hair falling in waves around her shoulders. Mark paused, watching her. She grabbed a bag and looked at it, finally pulling it off the carousel and letting the large suitcase slam on to the ground and turning, pulling it behind her. Mark shoved his hands in his pockets and smiled softly, waiting for her to notice him.

Kalen sighed as she yanked the suitcase along and ran her fingers through her hair. She walked face down, and when she finally looked up to make sure she didn't run in to anyone, Mark was standing just a few feet in front of her and a smile broke on her face. She slid the sunglasses up her face, letting them settle in her hair and stopped walking. "Hi."

"Hey." He took the few steps between them, standing close to her. "How was your flight?"

She smiled. "Good."

"Yeah?" He grinned. "That's good."

She nodded. "It sure is." They stood, face to face like that for a few minutes before he smirked and then leaned in, kissing her softly. Kalen sucked in a breath and kissed him back, the hand that wasn't holding her suitcase slipping around his neck. Mark pulled back, his breath labored. "I missed you." Kalen whispered, her forehead pressed against his.

"I missed you too." He smiled and pecked her lips twice before stepping back. "Tons." She smiled widely and he took the suitcase, reaching for her hand.

Her fingers laced through his and her heart swelled. Age difference and his past aside, she'd never felt this way from just holding hands with someone. Mark led her over to where a woman was standing and Kalen furrowed her brow. "Mark…"

"Kalen, you remember my sister Denielle?"

"Oh, uh, yeah...I think so. It's been a while."

"It has." Denielle smiled. "How are your parents?"

"They're fine. Living in Seattle and doing well."

"That's good." Kalen nodded. "Shall we?" Mark nodded and they followed Denielle out to Mark's car.

"Is she staying with you?" Kalen whispered, her thumb running over Marks hand.

"Yeah. Is that alright?"

"It's your apartment, Mark. I was just wondering."

"Wait, so, you're not moving in?"

Kalen shrugged. "I don't know yet."

"You've had all this time to think about it, Kalen; I thought you would have made a decision."

"Well I haven't, alright?" She snapped, pulling her sunglasses back down over her face.

Mark frowned. "Kalen…"

"Don't worry about it." She dropped her iPod in to her bag and leaned against the car.

He set her suitcase in the trunk. "Kalen, what's going on?"

"Nothing."

"K…"

She sighed. "I only have two days before I'm going to be in school full time and on the spring soccer team. Not to mention I coach at my old high school…I'm busy, Mark, and I won't be able to see you much. I was just hoping we could spend the next two days together."

"We can."

"Doing things your sister should not be a part of." She said softly, cocking an eyebrow.

He laughed. "We can, Kalen. She's leaving in the morning."

"She is?"

"Yeah. She's not stupid, she knows we want to spend time together."

"Oh. I thought—I mean, you said she was staying, I thought you meant for the weekend."

"No."

"Okay." She smiled. "That's good."

He grinned and kissed her softly. "So you want to come back to my place?"

"Actually, I have to pack."

"Pack?" She smiled. "So you did make a decision…"

"Just come get me in the morning, after Denielle leaves." Mark let out a whooping sound and lifted her up, causing her to shriek and laugh. "Mark, put me down!"

He finally did set her down, grinning as he ran his fingers through her hair. "Kalen, I'm so excited.."

She smiled. "Obviously." He kissed her again and then shut the trunk, opening the back door for her. She slid in, grinning the whole way back to her dorm.

Mark opened the back door and helped her out. "I'll see you in the morning, then?"

She nodded, lifting her suitcase out of the trunk. "Yeah. Just call me when you're on your way."

"Okay." He kissed her and hugged her tight, leaning against the car and watching her as she walked in to the building. When he hopped back in the car, Denielle was smiling. "What?"

"She makes you really happy, doesn't she?"

"Yes."

"You haven't been dating that long, Mark. Is having her move in such a good idea?"

"We've only been sleeping together for the last couple of months or so, but if you really think about it, we've been dating for years."

* * *

Kalen walked in to her dorm room with a sigh. Still no roommate. Not that it mattered much now. She set her suitcase down by the door and left the door open, heading down the hall to the lounge to find boxes. 

"KALEN!!!" She spun and immediately was enveloped by a pair of strong arms. "You're back."

"Yeah." She pulled back, smiling. "It's good to see you too Jaron."

"I missed you kid." She laughed. "I did!"

"I know. I missed you too. But I'm not back for long."

"What?" He crossed his arms over his chest. "Why not?"

"I'm moving in with my boyfriend."

"You have a boyfriend?"

"Yeah…is that a shock or something?"

"Honey, you're like the female Mark Sloan."

"I resent that."

Jaron laughed. "Sweetie you sleep around."

"Not anymore. And neither does he, by the way."

"Oh? And how do you know that?" She smirked and turned, heading in to the lounge. "Kalen…" Jaron gasped. "You're dating him, aren't you?"

She smiled, stacking boxes together. "Yes."

"Oh my god. Your parents are going to kill you."

"My parents already know."

"You got drunk while you were there, didn't you?"

She rolled her eyes. "Does Megan tell you everything?"

"Hey, she's my sister. And besides, it's not like it's a secret that when you get drunk you spill the beans."

"Boy, I sure am glad that I'm so well known around here." She scoffed, kicking a stack of boxes aside and going for more.

"Oh, like other people our age are that much different."

"Well that's true." She stood up straight, putting her hands on her hips. "Where is your sister, anyway?"

"Hanging out with the boy toy."

"And where's your boy toy?"

He sighed. "In New Jersey with his family for the weekend."

"He didn't take you with him?"

"Hi parents still don't know he's gay."

"Oh. Is he going to tell them this weekend?"

Jaron shrugged. "I don't know. He's from a Catholic family. Gay is not accepted."

"I know, Jaron, I'm Catholic too."

"Honey, you are not Catholic. You may have been raised catholic, but when was the last time you went to church?"

Kalen wrinkled her nose. "Okay, so it has been years, but whatever. Technically, I'm catholic."

Jaron laughed. "Well, David is really Catholic. Like, still goes to church on Sundays and observes all of the holidays catholic."

"I observe the holidays!"

"Lent?"

"Okay, so not all of the holidays…"

He shook his head. "If he doesn't tell him this weekend that's fine. His family may not understand, but mine does, and they love David."

"That is certainly true. I think Megan might like David more than she likes you."

He smiled. "Not possible. I'm the coolest big brother ever."

"Big brother? You're three minutes older than her."

"So?"

Kalen shook her head and shoved a stack of boxes at him. "Carry those please."

"Your wish is my command my dear." He smiled and lifted the boxes on to his shoulder, carrying them down the hall to her room and setting them on the ground between the two beds. "Still no roommate, huh?"

"It doesn't matter much now." She said, dropping the boxes she was carrying. "I'm leaving too."

"True." He smirked. "You think they would let David and I move in here?"

Kalen cocked an eyebrow. "Don't you already have a roommate?"

"Kalen…"

"I don't know, Jaron. Maybe." She started unloading the boxes and then looked around her room. "There is no way all of this is going to fit in Mark's apartment."

"I can't believe you're moving in with him. How long have you been together?"

"Well, we've been sleeping together since about two weeks before I left for Seattle, but we've kind of been dating for years."

"What does that mean?"

"He's been one of my best friends for a long time. And, save the fact that we didn't kiss until a couple of months ago, and we were both sleeping with other people, we've been dating. We'd go to movies, and go out to dinner…it's like we've been in an open relationship since I was 18."

"Do your parents know that?"

"No. They just know that we're together now. Dad doesn't like it much, but Mom is…alright with it, although I don't really like to think about what Mom thinks about Mark."

"Yeah, I wouldn't either."

She laughed. "Well, your Mom would never have slept with any of your boyfriends."

"True." He laughed. "The whole her having boobs thing would turn most of them off."

"Yeah…" She sighed and sat down on the bed. "I'm terrified, Jaron."

"I know sweetie. But he obviously really likes you."

"He asked me to marry him."

"What?!?" Jaron stared. "You've barely started really dating."

"I know. That's what I told him. But I think he really likes me, and I don't want to disappoint him."

"I doubt that very much."

"I sure hope you're right. Disappointing him would rip me apart."

"Then you won't." He smiled. "I should go, I have to go to work, but promise me you'll say goodbye before you leave in the morning?"

She nodded. "Of course. We'll still see each other, Jaron."

"I know. But it'll be different, once you're living with him."

"Yeah." She nodded. "I promise I'll say goodbye."

"Okay." He kissed her cheek and left. Kalen sighed and leaned back on the bed, closing her eyes. God, she hoped she was making the right decision.

* * *

Mark sat on his couch later that night, Denielle on her phone to her husband in the other room. Mark ran his fingers over the couch and stared down at his pant leg. He was terrified he would do wrong by Kalen, and he just couldn't have that. He had refrained from having sex with anyone else while she was gone, and while that was no great feat for most men, he was rather proud of himself. But he didn't want to hurt her. He would hate himself if he did, and he knew Derek would have yet another reason to hate him, and he didn't want that either. He continued tracing patterns on his couch, his mind wandering. 

_Kalen jolted awake, gasping for breath. She ran her fingers through her hair, wiping the tears from her face. Sitting up, she swung her legs over the side of the couch and took a deep breath._

_Mark, who had fallen asleep in the chair, woke slowly. "Kalen?" She didn't respond, taking short raspy breaths, trying to calm down. "Kalen?" Mark stood up and went over to the couch, sitting down next to her and setting his hand on her back. Kalen burst in to tears, turning and burying herself in his chest. "Hey, hey…what's wrong?" He asked softly, rubbing circles on her back. He hated seeing her upset like this._

"_Bad dream." She managed, fisting his shirt in her hands. Mark continued to rub her back as she clung to him, her tears soaking his shirt. After a few minutes she finally pulled back, taking a deep breath. "Sorry."_

"_It's alright, Kalen." He said, wiping the stray tears from her cheeks. "Do you want to talk about it?"_

_She sighed. "It was just a bad dream. Mom and Dad were gone, and something happened to the baby…I don't really remember it, but it was awful."_

_Mark hugged her to him. "Your Mom and Dad are fine, and the baby is with a good family."_

"_I know." She smiled weakly. "Thank you." He nodded. He never had been good at the whole comforting thing, but he'd always tried harder with her. Kalen watched him for a minute, and before she knew what she was doing, her mouth was on his; hands cupping the back of his head. And, to her utter surprise, Mark kissed her back, his tongue tracing her bottom lip._

_Mark couldn't believe she was kissing him. He'd begun to see her differently than he used to, but he'd never imagined this. He slid his tongue across her bottom lip, tangling his fingers in her hair._

_Kalen pulled back for air and immediately turned red. "Sorry. I—I shouldn't have done that…"_

"_Don't apologize." Mark said, pulling her in to his lap. "I'm glad you did."_

"_You—you are?" He nodded and she smiled. Her smile made his heart leap and he kissed her again, holding her close to him._

Mark jolted out of his daydream when he heard Denielle come back in to the room. They'd slept together for the first time, but when he'd woken up in the morning she was gone, which had killed him.

"Mark?" He turned, noticing that Denielle was holding her suitcase. "The twins are sick, so I'm going to head home."

"Oh. Okay. Do they have the flu or something?"

She nodded. "Yeah, that's what Dylan said."

"Alright. Well I hope they feel better."

"Thanks." She smiled. "Go see your girl, Mark. You've missed her a lot, I know that." He nodded. "Go see her."

"Okay." He stood, hugging her. "Thanks for coming to visit, Denielle. Maybe soon Kalen and I can come down to New Jersey and see you and Dylan and the kids."

She nodded. "I'd like that. I'll see you later." Denielle left, and Mark barely waited until the door shut before he started putting on his shoes, calling Kalen's cell.

"Hello?"

"Hey. My sister left early."

"Oh. How come?"

"Her kids are sick."

"Oh that's too bad."

"Yeah. Do you want me to come get you?"

"I'm nowhere near packed, Mark."

"I could come stay the night."

"It's a twin bed."

"So?"

She smiled. "Alright. Call when you get here."

"Okay." Mark hung up the phone and immediately headed down to his car, racing over to the school.

* * *

That night, after helping her pack, Mark was tangled with Kalen underneath the down comforter on her bed. 

"Do you remember the first night we were together?" Mark asked, running his fingers along the hem of her shirt.

She nodded. "Of course I do."

"Why did you leave?"

She sighed. "I was scared."

"Of what?"

"That I had done something wrong. That I'd made a big mistake."

"Did you?"

"Did I what?"

"Make a big mistake?"

She shook her head without hesitation. "No, Mark. It was one of the best decisions I've made in a long time. You're the only right thing I've done in a long time."

He smiled. "I feel the same way, Kalen. I hope you know that."

She nodded. "I do." He kissed her and rested his forehead against hers, looking in to her eyes. A few minutes later, she wiggled, as if she needed something.

"You alright?"

She blushed. "Yes."

"Kalen…"

She shrugged. "I'm fine." She said softly, though her body was betraying her because she wiggled again.

"You want sex, don't you?"

"No."

"You're a horrible liar." He said lowly. Kalen turned red and looked away from him. He laughed softly and shifted them so that he was hovering above her. "I want sex too." He said, smirking. She looked up at him and he grinned, leaning down to kiss her softly. She whimpered and kissed him back, her hands sliding under his shirt and up his back. He broke the kiss and let her slide the shirt over his head, taking the same opportunity once his was tossed across the room. Mark almost stopped breathing as her shirt slid out of his hand on to the floor. He'd forgotten just how beautiful she was.

"Mark?" He looked up at her eyes, noting the smirk on her face. "Having fun staring at my breasts?"

"You're beautiful." He said softly. The smirk dropped off Kalen's face and she kissed him, sliding her tongue between his lips.

"Kalen…? Whoops. Uh, sorry." Megan, Kalen's best friend and Jaron's sister, stood in the now open doorway. "Uh, I didn't mean to interrupt, but this is important. You need to come out here."

Kalen frowned. "Right now?"

"If you didn't need to be out here right now, would I have walked in here?" Kalen sighed and Mark slid off of her, his feet dropping to the floor with a thud. Kalen put a shirt back on, accidentally slipping his over her head instead of her own, leaving him to follow her out in to the hall with no shirt on. Kalen and Mark followed Megan to the lounge, where a large group of kids were watching the news. Jaron turned when they walked in, a grim look on his face.

"What's going on?" She asked. Jaron un-muted the television, turning back to it.

"Incase you're just joining us, there has been a shooting at Seattle Grace Hospital in Seattle, Washington. Chief Richard Webber and neurosurgeon Derek Shepherd have made it out of the hospital, but there are a number of surgeons still inside, and three of them have been shot. While the shooter remains nameless, the three victims have been identified as interns George O'Malley and Alex Karev, and one of the foremost neo-natal surgeons in the country, Addison Montgomery-Shepherd…"


	12. Tommy Gun

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Tommy Gun"**

_tommy gun, you ain't happy less you got one  
tommy gun, ain't gonna shoot the place up  
just for fun, maybe he wants to die for the money  
maybe he wants to kill for his country  
whatever he wants, he's gonna get it!  
tommy gun, you can be a hero in an age of none  
tommy gun, i'm cutting out your picture from page one  
i'm gonna get a jacket just like yours  
an' give my false support to your cause  
whatever you want, you're gonna get it! –  
"Tommy Gun"  
by The Clash_

Mark stared out the window of the plane, the sun setting in the sky. Kalen was curled up in his arms, tears dried on her cheeks. He rubbed her back slowly, glancing down at her whenever she whimpered or flinched against him. His heart broke for her, and he'd wanted to tell her that it was going to be okay since they'd first heard the news, but he just couldn't. Because they really didn't know.

Right after the newscaster had said Addison's name, Kalen went pale and almost stopped breathing. Mark had to shake her to get her to move, and twenty minutes later they were on their way to the airport, tears streaming down Kalen's face as he held her to his chest in the back of the cab. Kalen had called Derek when they got to the airport, but she could barely speak she was still crying so hard. Derek had managed to tell Mark that they still hadn't heard anything, but he couldn't really talk either.

Kalen whimpered and fisted his shirt in her hand, jolting Mark away from the window. She tugged on his shirt and started to cry in her sleep, her face scrunching in pain.

Mark stroked her hair. "Kalen. Kalen, baby, wake up." She didn't respond except to tug harder on his shirt. He shook her softly. "Kalen, wake up." She let out a gasp and her eyes flew open. "Baby, are you alright." She shook her head, burying her face in his chest. "What is it, K? What do you need?"

She sighed. "I w-want my mommy." She whimpered, crying in to his chest.

Mark's heart broke in eight million pieces. "Oh baby…" She started to sob and he pulled a blanket around her, lifting the arm rest up and pulling her to him. He rubbed her back, trying to get her to at least calm down.

Kalen looked up a few minutes later. "She can't die."

"I know."

"I don't know what I would do if she died."

"I know sweetie."

"She can't die." She repeated. "She can't."

* * *

In Seattle, Derek was pacing outside the hospital. The way things were set up reminded him of that movie Addison and Kalen made him sit down and watch…John Q or something like that. He and Richard had made it out before things got too out of control, but most of the other surgeons did not. Some had started to filter out; Meredith, Izzie and Preston were all standing behind the Police Lines with him now, but there were so many still inside. And Addison…Derek stopped breathing every time he thought about the fact that she was still in there. 

The guy had been after him. His wife had died on Derek's table about three weeks before, and the man had come in asking to speak to him. The nurse had directed him to Addison's office by accident. She was in there talking to Alex Karev, and George O'Malley had walked in at the wrong moment. And now Derek had no idea what was going on. No one would tell him. He was pretty sure the police knew, and Richard, but he couldn't get anyone to tell him what was going on.

A car screeched to a stop in the parking lot, and Derek turned. Kalen slid slowly out of the Aston Martin, staring blankly towards where all of the police things were set up. She leaned against the car, her arms hanging lifelessly by her side. Derek started towards her, stopping at the police lines as Mark came around the car.

"Kalen." Derek swallowed as she appeared to make eye contact with him, but she didn't really acknowledge that she'd seen him. Mark did though, and put his arm around Kalen, leading her towards where Derek was.

"I'm sorry." A police officer stepped in front of Derek. "No one is allowed inside."

"She's my daughter." Derek said, causing the police officer to turn around. "She's Dr. Montgomery-Shepherd's daughter."

"Well she can go in, but you can't." He said, looking at Mark. "I'm sorry."

"Please." Kalen said softly, startling Mark, who hadn't heard her speak since the plane. "I need him with me."

"Ma'm I'm sorry…"

Tears fell on her cheeks. "Please?"

He sighed. "Alright, but as far as other people are concerned, he's your husband." She nodded and Derek cringed as the police officer let them in. Kalen immediately fell in to Derek's arms, wrapping her arms tight around him.

"How are you holding up baby?" He asked softly, kissing the top of her head.

She shrugged. "Not very well. What do you know?"

"Nothing, yet. They won't tell me anything." Kalen sighed and pulled back from the hug. She kissed his cheek and headed for the group of police officers that appeared to be discussing what was going on. "K…"

She waved him off. "Excuse me?" The police officers turned around. "I'm Addison Montgomery-Shepherd's daughter, and I was just wondering if I could find out how my mother is doing."

"I'm sorry miss, but we can't disclose that information."

"Why not?"

"We just can't."

"WHY NOT?!?" She demanded. "She's my mother, I wanna know!"

"Miss, please. We're just not allowed…"

"Can't you just tell me whether or not she's alive?"

The police officer looked down. "We're not sure."

Kalen paled. "How do you not know?"

"We can't get in to the office they're in."

Kalen's eyes widened. "Break down the door!"

"We can't."

"I don't understand. Why not?"

"The man told us that if we try to get in he'll kill them."

"So they are still alive."

"We're assuming, but we're not positive."

Kalen sighed and tears fell down her cheeks. "Can you do anything?"

"Not yet. We're working on it though, miss, and we'll let you know as soon as we know what's going to happen."

She nodded. "Th-thank you." She turned and walked back to where Derek and Mark were standing. "They're assuming she's still alive but they don't actually know." She said softly, looking down. Derek pulled her in to a hug and she pressed her face in to his chest like she used to do when she was little. He ran his fingers through her hair, holding her to him. Mark squeezed her hand as it wrapped around Derek's back. They stood like that for almost twenty minutes when a huge commotion caused them to turn.

A man in a doctors coat was walking out of the front doors to the hospital, and you could see the blood coming through his shirt. Derek sucked in a breath. "That's O'Malley. Someone get him some help!" He shouted, just as doctors from the ER raced up to him. Alex Karev came out behind him and Kalen's heart started to pound. Addison should walk out any minute now. She watched the doors, staring as nurses helped Alex in to a wheelchair; he'd only been shot in the arm. George was being taken to the ER quickly; the bullet had hit him in the side. Kalen started to pace.

"K?" Mark said softly, touching her shoulder.

"Where is she? Where's mom?"

"I don't know." Kalen bit her lip and ducked under the police tape. "KALEN?"

She raced towards Alex Karev, kneeling down in front of him. "Where is she? Where's my mom?"

"He wouldn't let her leave." Alex said softly. "I'm really sorry." Kalen closed her eyes and then stood, glancing back at where everyone was standing before heading slowly towards the doors. People didn't seem to notice, and then someone started to yell.

"Hey! Don't go in there!" Kalen paused and then sprinted for the door.

Mark and Derek froze. "Kalen! KALEN!!!" Mark yelled, panicking. "Kalen don't!"

Before anyone could get to her, Kalen was in the front doors and sprinting up the stairs. She ran up the three flights of stairs to the floor Addison's office was on and tiptoed carefully down the hall. She could hear arguing coming from Addison's office. She paused by the door and she could see her mother, perched on the edge of her desk, arm in a sling.

"Please, you don't understand. These things just happen sometimes. My husband, he did everything he could for your wife, and I'm so sorry for your loss, but you need to let me go."

"No. My wife was young. She didn't deserve to die!"

"No one deserves to die. Please, let me leave. I have a daughter; a family."

"I had a family. Your husband killed my family!"

"He didn't do it on purpose!" Kalen snapped. Her hand immediately flew to her mouth and she hid around the corner.

He turned. "Who was that?" He moved towards the door. "Who said that?!?" Kalen squeezed her eyes shut, praying he wouldn't see her hiding around the corner. Before she knew it, a hand was wrapped around her arm, pulling her in to Addison's office.

"Wait, please. I-I didn't mean to, I just…I'm sorry…" Kalen stammered as he pulled her in to the room.

Addison gasped softly. "Kalen…"

She bit her lip, trying to wrench free of the man's grasp. "Hi Momma."

"Oh, so this is your daughter." He smirked. "Well, since your husband deprived me of my family," He lifted his gun, pressing the barrel against the side of Kalen's head, "maybe I should deprive you of yours."

Kalen squeezed her eyes shut again. "Mommy…" She whispered, her hands forming fists.

"Please don't." Addison said, her voice coming out weak and shaky. "Please. She's twenty years old."

"My wife was twenty-four!"

"Please." Addison stepped towards him. "Please don't."

He sighed and cocked the gun, causing Kalen to bite down on her lip harder, drawing blood. Tears were falling on her cheeks. "One step closer and I swear to god I'll shoot her." Kalen squeezed her eyes shut harder her hands shaking.

The next thing she knew the man was shouting and Kalen screamed as the gun went off, her shoulder blaring with intense pain before she blacked out completely.


	13. Mama You Got A Daughter

**I'm still trying to decide whether or not I even like this chapter. Sorry it's been so long since I updated, guys. Thanks for sticking around.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

"**Mama, You Got A Daughter"**

_Well mama mama, talk to your daughter for me  
Well mama mama, talk to your daughter for me  
Tell your daughter that I love her now, I´ll do anything I can  
Tell your daughter I love her, love her till the day I die  
Tell your daughter I love her, I´ll love her till the day I die  
I want to you to talk to your daughter, talk to your daughter for me  
I´m loving that woman, I´m crazy about your daughter  
I´m waiting for your daughter, I love your daughter  
I love your daughter, tell me what I´ll do – _

"_Mama, You Got a Daughter"_

_By John Lee Hooker_

Derek watched through the gallery window as another doctor from another hospital operated on Kalen. His baby girl. He sighed, pacing back and forth. Okay, so she wasn't technically his baby girl, but it certainly felt like she was. He still remembered the day he met her. Kalen was just barely seven months old, and already babbling and throwing things around Addison's apartment. He stopped pacing and stared in to the gallery, watching her carefully.

"_MAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA." Derek startled as a child's scream came from inside Addison's apartment. He knocked again, and tried to listen as he heard Addison's voice. When Addison finished talking, the small voice of a little girl came again, this time softer. "Maaaaa." He laughed softly and waited, leaning against the wall. The door opened a few minutes later and Addison's eyes widened._

"_Hi." Derek said. "You forgot didn't you?"_

_She sighed. "Yes. Oh gosh, Derek, I don't think I can tonight."_

"_Ba-BA!" A crash came from inside the house and Addison cringed._

"_Who is that?" Derek asked, shoving his hands in his pockets._

"_Kalen." She opened the door wider. "Come on in." He followed her inside, looking around her apartment. "Kalen, what did Mommy say about throwing things?" The little girl just stared at her from where she was sitting on the floor. "Kalen…"_

"_Ma poo." Kalen said, reaching for her mother. "Poo."_

_Addison shook her head. "I don't know what poo means, but okay." She said softly, lifting her up. Derek was leaning against the wall, watching them. "Kalen, this is Derek." Kalen gurgled and planted a kiss on her mothers nose, giggling. "Derek, this is my daughter, Kalen."_

"_She looks like you." He said smiling._

"_You think?"_

_He nodded. "Absolutely."_

_Addison smiled. "Well I certainly hope so. We wouldn't want her looking like someone else, now would we?" Addison wrinkled her nose and Kalen followed suit, looking between her mother and Derek before reaching out for Derek._

"_Oh." He carefully took her in his arms and Kalen reached up, playing with his hair. "You like that?" He laughed as Kalen tugged and gurgled._

"_Careful." Addison said. Kalen ignored her mother and continued to tug on Derek's hair. When she finally stopped and looked at him, peering at his face curiously, Derek tossed her up in to the air. The little girls eyes widened and when she landed in his arms she stared at him for a minute for a grin spread over her face. Derek smiled and tossed her up in the air again, relishing in the giggle that came out of her mouth._

"_Why don't the three of us go out?" Derek said, smiling as he caught Kalen in his arms again. "I'm assuming the babysitter cancelled?"_

"_Y-yeah." Addison swallowed. "Are you sure? I mean…she's kind of a handful."_

_Derek laughed as Kalen slapped her small hands against his cheeks, tugging up as if trying to tell him to toss her in the air again. "I think we'll be just fine."_

"Derek." Derek turned, coming face to face with Mark. "Addison is awake."

Derek let out a breath. "Thanks." He raced out of the gallery and to the recovery room. Alex and George were sitting near Addison's bedside, and Alex was trying to joke with her, but Addison would just shake her head. Derek knocked on the door. "Hey."

She smiled softly. "Derek."

"Hey Dr. Shepherd." Alex stood and rested his hand on George's wheelchair, pushing him forward. "We'll come by and see you later, Addison."

She nodded. "Thanks for stopping by." Derek stepped aside and Alex one handedly wheeled George out of the room and then went in, shutting the door behind him. "Hi."

"Hey baby," He sat down next to her bed. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm alright. It wasn't too bad of a wound. The bullet didn't hit any major nerves in my arm, and otherwise it's just bumps and bruises."

"That's good." He kissed her. "That's so good."

"How is Kalen?"

"Still in surgery."

Addison paled. "Wh-what? Why?"

"She was shot twice."

"N-no. Only once."

Derek shook his head. "The gun went off twice, right?"

"Yeah."

"The bullet that went into his back came out the front and made contact right next to the first one in Kalen's shoulder."

"Oh god." Tears filled Addison's eyes. "I can't believe…she's going to be okay, right?"

"Of course she is." He kissed her gently. "She'll be fine. She's going to be just fine."

* * *

Mark wished he had been smart enough to chase after her. To duck under the barriers and grab her before she dashed in to the hospital. But he hadn't been able to move. Watching her race through the doors made his heart fall in to his stomach and his feet cement to the ground, and when he'd finally managed to move, the police officers stopped him. One extra person was already too much, they couldn't have him running in there too.

He paced and clenched his fists together and waited what seemed like a lifetime but what was only about fifteen minutes before Addison came stumbling out of the front doors, yelling that the man was down and someone needed to tend to Kalen. He'd been banned from the OR, and had paced in the scrub room until Richard sent him up to the gallery to tell Derek that Addison was awake.

Now he was waiting. They were almost done, but he wished they would hurry up. The sooner her surgery was over, the sooner she would wake up, and the sooner he could hug her and kiss her and tell her that he loved her and he was terrified for her. And she would shake her head and kiss him back and tell him to "quit worrying" because she was fine, and he would fall asleep with his head on her lap or with her head in the crook of his neck and everything would be alright.

Ten minutes later, Kalen was wheeled in to recovery, and Mark followed, hovering. After a few minutes of begging and pleading, Richard agreed to let Mark into the room. He sat down next to the bed and held Kalens hand, running his fingers over her skin; watching her.

"Are you the boyfriend?" The surgeon, called over from Mercy West, shut her chart and looked over at Mark.

"Yeah, that's me."

The man smiled. "Then you should know, the baby is fine."

"B-baby?"

He nodded. "Miss Shepherd is about three and a half weeks pregnant."

Marks eyes widened. Three and a half weeks coincided with the last time she was in the hospital. "You're sure?"

"Positive."

"Oh. Okay, thanks."

"You're welcome." The doctor left, shutting the door behind him. Mark rested his head on Kalen's pillow, pressing a kiss to her shoulder. He stayed like that for almost an hour, until the crick in his neck proved too much and he had to lean back. As soon as he moved, Kalen opened her eyes; albeit slowly.

"Hey baby." He said softly.

She smiled weakly. "Hi."

"How do you feel?"

"Alright I guess." She took a staggered breath. "Is Mom alright?"

"She's fine, sweetheart. She's in the next room."

"Okay good."

"And the baby is okay too." He said softly, smiling.

"What baby?" She asked, frowning.

"Our baby…didn't you know?"

"Know what?"

"You're pregnant, K."

Kalen's eyes widened. "I'm what? What am I, the most fertile person _ever_?"

"Baby…"

"Mark, I gave Hadley up for adoption because I wasn't ready for a baby. A few months isn't going to make much of a difference."

"Kalen…"

"Can I see my Mom?"

"I don't know if that's a very good idea."

"I want to see her."

Mark nodded and stood. "Kalen, about the baby…"

"Mark, please." He nodded and left the room, shutting the door behind him.

* * *

Derek wheeled Addison in to Kalen's room and shut the door, standing out in the hall with Mark, who looked like he was going to be sick.

"Dude, she's okay. What's wrong with you?"

"What would you do if Addison was pregnant but didn't want the baby?"

Derek frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Kalen's pregnant." Mark said softly. Derek stared at him. "She's almost four weeks along, and…" Marks sentence was cut off when Derek socked him in the jaw, sending him sprawling to the floor. "Shit, Derek!"

"YOU GOT HER PREGNANT?!?!?"


	14. Last Request

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

**Last Request**

_Slow down, Lie down,  
Remember it's just you and me.  
Don't sell out, bow out,  
Remember how this used to be.  
I just want you closer,  
Is that alright?  
Baby let's get closer tonight  
Grant my last request,  
And just let me hold you.  
Don't shrug your shoulders,  
Lay down beside me.  
Sure I can accept that we're going nowhere,  
But one last time let's go there,  
Lay down beside me – _

"_Last Request"_

_By Paolo Nutini_

Mark cradles Kalen in his arms, burying his face in her hair. He can't help but breathe in deeply, trying to remember the smell of her shampoo. As she sleeps he traces his hands over her body, remembering the feel of her breasts in his hands, how soft the skin of her thigh is; how her muscles twitch (even when she's sleeping) as he flicks at her clit. He refrains from doing anything more, knowing that she would wake up if he were to. He presses a kiss to her temple and slips out of bed, watching her roll towards the dip in the bed where he had been lying and snuggle against the bed sheets as if the sheets were made of Mark. As he finishes pulling his shirt over his head, he pulls the covers up around her and kisses her hair, leaving the letter he wrote her on the bedside table. He slips out of the hotel room, finally taking a deep breath once he's in the hallway. Her things have been moved back in to her dorm, he made sure of that yesterday. He knows where she's going in the morning, and he can't deal with it again. Heading to the elevator, he heads up two floors to the hotel room he'd reserved for himself earlier in the day, ignoring the vibrating of his phone in his pocket. He knows it isn't Kalen, she sleeps like a log; it's probably Stevens or Grey. He gave them his number when they patched him up after Derek socked him seven days before. He figured he was going to need friends, he just didn't know that they would need to be his friend just as badly.

He slips in to the hotel room and crawls in to bed, turning off his phone without checking to see who called. The argument they had when she was still in the hospital plays over and over in his head as he falls asleep, tossing and turning and twisting the sheets in to a ball by morning.

"_I don't understand. How can you not want this?"_

"_How can you?" Kalen sighs, running her fingers through her hair. "Mark I'm not ready for a baby. I can't manage like Mom can."_

"_You're more like your mom than you think." He says softly, not sure if he means it in a good or bad way._

"_I can't raise a child and go to college. I knew that the last time I was pregnant." He watches as she scrunches the blankets up in her hands, her face crinkling. "I still cannot believe I'm pregnant again. I've got to be the most fertile person ever."_

"_I doubt that." Alex Karev comes in, ignoring Mark's blatant stare that says 'Leave you moron'. "Your mom had a patient that was having her seventh child not that long ago."_

_Kalen laughs. "Well I suppose I should be glad I'm not having my seventh." Mark smiles a little but it fades as Karev goes to draw blood and she squeezes the interns hand instead of Mark's. Kalen had never been a fan of needles, and it was obvious that hadn't changed. Mark goes to hold her hand, but she balls her hand in to a fist, a subtle way of telling him to back the fuck off._

"_You should be." Karev smiles and the three of them sit in relative silence while he finishes drawing the blood and then leaves._

_Mark shifts on the edge of the bed and sighs. "Kalen…"_

"_Mark, I'm not going to have the baby. I'm not."_

"_You're going to have an abortion?"_

"_Well if I have it, you'll want to keep it, and then I'll be reminded every day that I am forever tied to you."_

_Mark cringes. "Is that such a bad thing?"_

"_Unfortunately, it is."_

* * *

Derek settles in bed next to Addison, lacing their fingers together wordlessly. 

"You alright?" She asks, squeezing his hand but not looking up from the _Cosmopolitan_ she's flipping through.

"Kalen wants to take some time off from school."

"I know. She told me."

"Does that mean she's going to keep the baby?"

Addison shakes her head, closing the magazine and looking at him over the top of her glasses. "No, Derek, it doesn't. She has an appointment tomorrow morning."

"An appointment?" Derek frowns. "I figured that you would be the one to do all of her prenatal."

"It's not prenatal, Derek." She takes her glasses off and sits Indian style on the bed, taking both of his hands in hers. "She's not having the baby at all."

"WHAT?" Derek's voice raising, causing Addison to jump a little and drop his hands. "Shepherds do not have abortions."

"Derek…"

"I don't care whose child it is, she will give it up for adoption or keep it. End of story."

"No, Derek." Addison sighs, reaching for his hands again. "You don't get to choose how the story ends."

"I don't want her to have an abortion."

"It isn't about what you want." Addison bites her lip, trying to find a way to explain what's happening to him without sounding like a horrible person. "Kalen is doing what's best for the child. She got lucky with Hadley; she'll get to watch her grow up, and as far as Hadley will ever know, Kalen is just her older sister. It's different with this one. You know Mark, he won't sign the adoption papers, and Kalen will look in to the eyes of that child every day, knowing she can't be the mother that it needs." Addison swallows, fighting back tears. "Not at this point in time anyway."

"Addie…why are you crying?"

"I don't want her to do this either, Derek. I—I almost did this with her, and I'm so glad that I didn't, but Kalen doesn't have anything figured out right now." She wipes her tears, sniffling. "She can't be a mother. You need to understand…she's trying to keep the child from living a life it hates."

Derek nods slowly and pulls Addison in to his arms, stroking her hair, careful not to press her still hurt shoulder too hard in to his body. "I don't understand, but I guess that's not that important. It's what Kalen needs right now."

Addison nods, wrapping her arms slowly around him. "It is. And she's going to move here. To Seattle." Addison looks up at him and smiles. "She wants to transfer to the University of Washington."

"But she's got a scholarship at Ithaca." He says, realizing as soon as he finishes that it was the wrong thing to say. Addison's eyes get sad again and he presses a kiss to the top of her head. "It doesn't matter. We'll get a bigger place, and she'll take some time off from school, and when she goes back, she can go to whatever school in Seattle she wants to."

Addison smiles again and kisses him gently. "You always have been a great dad."

"Except I punched her boyfriend."

Addison smirks. "Ex-boyfriend."

* * *

Kalen wakes up the next morning to her phone vibrating on the bedside table. As she rolls over to look at it, she realizes it's her hour warning for her appointment, and she sits up, looking around the room slowly. Pulling her glasses from the bedside table, she blinks away the sleep in her eyes and pulls the blanket tighter around her. Mark is gone, though she knew that much would be true. They broke up yesterday, which was probably better for them both, and the 'don't leave me' sex he'd offered had been wonderful, but she wasn't going to stay with him. She couldn't have his baby, and she couldn't stay in New York. While they had been in Seattle her things had been moved over to his place, so she was going to need to make sure her things got moved to Seattle before she went back to withdraw from Ithaca. Scholarship or not, she needed her parents right now, and being 3000 miles away from them was not good for her. 

She slides out of bed and takes a brief shower, knowing she would take a long hot shower when she gets back from the doctor. She tosses her damp hair in to a bun and rifles through her suitcase, searching for something clean. All she finds is a black skirt and white shirt, meaning she desperately needs to do laundry, especially since she would be staying in Seattle for three more days before returning to Ithaca to withdraw. She pops contacts in and puts on makeup at a slow pace, her hands shaking a little. When she returns to the bedside table to put her glasses back and retrieve her phone, she finally notices the letter from Mark. Dropping it in her purse, she heads out of the hotel room to meet her mother for breakfast at the restaurant in the lobby.

Kalen doesn't eat anything, she doesn't even drink any water, she just stares at the table as Addison munches on her muesli and yogurt, a habit she picked up from Derek long ago. When Addison asks Kalen if she's sure, Kalen nods but doesn't say anything; instead pulling Mark's letter out of her purse.

"He left this." She says softly, looking up at her mother with confused eyes.

"Just read it." Addison says as she touches Kalen's hand. "It can't hurt to read it." Kalen nods and they sit in silence for a little longer before Addison pays for her breakfast and they head out to the car. Kalen doesn't open the letter until they're sitting in the waiting room at the doctor's office, one hand shakily clutching Addison's.

_K – _

_You know I love you. You know that I never meant for you to be your mother's replacement, and had what happened between she and I not happened, maybe all of this wouldn't have been so hard. You know all of that, you've know all of that since our relationship started. I wish there was a way to convince you that this would work, but since I can't seem to do that, I have a few requests._

_Be happy, Kalen. Don't be sad, don't be depressed or anything, just be happy. You've been through rough things, but you've got the strength of a Shepherd and the stubbornness of a Montgomery in you, and I need you to be happy. Because if I hear, years down the road, that you're unhappily married, or stuck in a profession that you hate, my heart is going to break for you. Because all I've ever wanted is for you to be happy._

_Love your parents. They love you so much, K. Sometimes they might forget to show it, but I have a bruise that proves it. I wish Derek had resisted the urge to sock me across the room, but since he didn't, you can always have that memory. Just picture me stitched up and you'll remember. Derek loves you, and if Addie hadn't had a bullet in her arm, she probably would have smacked me across the face. They want you to be happy as much as I do, so love them and be happy, okay?_

_I only have one more request. It's kind of a big one. First, I promise to not contact you unless you contact me, just like you asked, and I promise to leave you and your family be, just like Derek asked. I promise that no matter what, but I'm asking you. Please. Keep the baby. I know you don't think you're ready, but I think you would make a wonderful mother. And Addie deserves to spoil a granddaughter or grandson, and Derek is going to need someone to play catch with since you're so obsessed with soccer. Don't do it for me. Do it for the grandparents to be, and for yourself. You would be an amazing mother, and I just…I'm just asking. You don't have to honor that request, I know it's big, but think about it, okay?_

_Knowing you, you're probably reading this in the doctors office, so I'll let you go. I love you, K. Be happy._

_Mark._

"Kalen Shepherd?" Kalen looks up, tears in her eyes. "Dr. Hammond will see you now."

**Okay guys. We're nearing the end here. It'll probably end next chapter, just so you're aware. Review please!! – Mel.**


	15. Almost Perfect

**Okay, here it is. Over a year later, the final chapter. Which was totally different than what I thought it was going to be, but I like it anyway. Enjoy, and thanks for reading.**

**Destination: Almost Perfect**

**Almost Perfect**

_There's a reason for the situation  
It's amazing, the shocking revelation  
Love is crazy, it's got me upside down  
It's got me upside down  
Well life hits you and love gets you  
You just gotta go with the flow  
Everything is almost perfect here  
The reason is coming crystal clear  
I think I really dig this atmosphere  
It's almost perfect here – _

"_Almost Perfect"_

_By Vaughan Penn_

**Dr. Isobel Marie Stevens  
And  
Michael James Mitchell  
Request the pleasure of your company  
At the celebration of their marriage  
On Tuesday, the sixteenth of November  
Two thousand and ten  
At eleven o'clock in the morning  
St. Patrick's Catholic Church of Seattle  
2702 Broadway Avenue East  
Seattle, Washington 98102**

**Reception to follow at The Alexis Hotel**

Mark hasn't been to a wedding in ages. Instead of using the perfectly embossed RSVP card, Mark calls Izzie, telling her that he won't be able to make it. But she begs; pleads even. She and Meredith have come to visit him (in fact, New York is where she met Michael), but he hasn't been to Seattle once since he left all those years ago. So he tells her that he'll think about it, and then three days later, he sends the RSVP card back; "will be attending" circled with flourish.

So now he's trudging off the plane, looking around SeaTac for Meredith Grey (who he's sure will be his weekend fuck buddy since all of the interns except for her and Cristina are married) and running his fingers through his hair. Kalen will be there. Kalen, he's sure, will be a bridesmaid. Izzie said once that they hang out, and Mark is pretty sure that they hang out enough that Kalen would be a bridesmaid.

He finds Meredith standing by baggage claim, hands shoved in the pockets of her coat, though why she's wearing a coat at the beginning of September he doesn't really know. She smiles and wraps him in a hug as he crosses over to her, and Mark almost breaks down and cries. No one has hugged him like that in a long time. He's slept with a large majority of the female population in New York, and he hasn't been hugged like that in…well, in three years.

Meredith leads him out to her car after they gather his luggage, and it isn't until they're leaving the airport that they start to make small talk. He asks how the Shepherds are, and she softly tells him that they're fine before changing the subject. She asks him if he knows how to get her in to the hospital in New York and when he asks why, she shrugs and says that she's tired of Seattle, not to mention she wants to go in to plastics and there isn't a good plastics attending in Seattle. Mark smiles and tells her that he'll talk to his boss while he's in town, which makes her smile, which makes him smile even bigger. It feels good to have friends again.

She drops him off at the hotel and they agree to meet for dinner before she speeds away, on her way to a last minute fitting for the light pink bridesmaids dress she would be wearing in two days. Mark checks in, his spine tingling as he walks in to the room. It looks exactly like the one he left Kalen peacefully sleeping in the day before she aborted his child. He sits down on the bed and lets out a sigh, leaning in to the comforter. He'd promised both Kalen and Derek that he would stay away from them, and he was praying that Izzie had already warned them that he was going to be at the wedding.

∞

"You _what_?" Kalen sighs heavily and clenches her fist, unable to cross her arms over her chest or do anything else for fear of getting stuck with a pin. "Izzie!"

"Kalen, he's my friend." Izzie says, flouncing around in her white wedding dress. "I wanted him here. He introduced Michael and I."

"I know but…my Dad is going to freak out."

"Derek Shepherd can get over it." Izzie smirks, sitting down on the carpet and letting her dress poof out around her. "I love this dress."

"We know." Meredith says as she enters the room, already stripping out of her clothes. She slips in to the dress and practically drowns in it. "Boy, I sure am glad we're doing another fitting."

"Meredith, if you didn't work so much you wouldn't loose so much weight." Izzie stands, walking over to Meredith and setting her hand on her shoulder. "I love you, but please, take some time off. Start eating properly."

"She eats fine." Kalen says, finally able to step down off of the stool she'd been on. "She eats like a freaking pig."

"Gee thanks." Meredith rolls her eyes and steps on to the stool, letting the seamstress begin to alter her dress. "I'm fine Izzie. But I'm planning on taking some time off anyway."

"Oh?" Izzie grins. "To do what?"

"That," Meredith says, turning to face the mirror, "is a secret."

∞

Kalen carries the dress carefully from her Jetta to her front door, unlocking it and stepping inside quickly, so as not to let the small puppy now running around out in to the hallway. She lives in a 2 bedroom apartment on Capitol Hill with the two loves of her life. As she sets her purse on the hall table and moves towards her bedroom one of those loves comes racing around the corner from the living room, immediately attaching himself to her leg.

"Mommy!" He shouts excitedly. Kalen grins and crouches down, lifting the three year old into her arms as she carries the dress in to the master bedroom and hangs it up.

"Hi baby." She finally says, kissing his forehead. "Did you have a good day?"

"Uh-huh. We went to the park."

"Oh you did, huh?" The little boy nods and rests his head on Kalen's shoulder, letting out a soft sigh. "I missed you."

"Miss mommy." He whispers, his eyes drooping. Kalen carries him out to the living room, where she finds the other love of her life sitting on the couch watching a basketball game.

"Hey." He says softly, smiling when he sees that the little boy is fast asleep in his mothers arms. "I guess I wore him out."

"I guess so." Kalen sits down next to him and presses a soft kiss to his lips, fiddling with the wedding ring on his fingers as she shifts the little boy to the other side and snuggles up next to her husband. "You took him to the park?"

He nods. "Yeah. He really wanted to take the puppy."

"Where is the puppy?" He points over to the corner where the small golden retriever is snuggled underneath a blanket, asleep. "Looks like you wore him out too."

"I guess so." Her husband kisses her gently and runs his fingers through her red curls. "How was the fitting?"

"Fine. It's not like I've gained or lost weight since the last time I got fitted, but whatever. I don't know why Izzie is freaking out so much."

"Kalen, you had your bridesmaids fitted three times in the three week period before our wedding."

She lightly smacks his arm and rolls her eyes. "Whatever."

He laughs softly and kisses her again as his pager vibrates on the table. He reaches for his cell phone and dials the hospital, sighing as he hangs up. "There was a car accident. All hands on deck."

She nods. "Okay. I'll see you later."

He smiles. "When Nate wakes up, tell him that Georgetown won."

Kalen laughs. "I will." She watches him gather his things to leave, rubbing slow circles on her son's back. "Alex?"

He turns, a smile on his face. "Yeah?"

"I love you."

He grins and kisses her swiftly before heading for the door. "I love you too Mrs. Karev."

∞

When Mark steps in to St. Patrick's Catholic Church two days later, his suit is making him uncomfortable and he's pretty sure his shoes squeak, but otherwise he seems to go unnoticed as he takes a seat on the brides side of the church. He watches the others file in, trying not to make an obvious ducking move as Addison sits down two rows in front of him and scans the crowd behind her, inevitably making eye contact with him. Her eyes widen a little and she waves slowly, causing Derek to turn around and give him a slow nod. Mark figures it's better than what could have happened.

The ceremony starts a few minutes later, and when a small boy with red curls starts down the aisle Mark sucks in a breath. He had always assumed that Kalen hadn't kept the baby, but he was pretty sure that there weren't any little boys in either Izzie's or Michael's family. He watches a dark haired girl that looks about the same age as the boy come down the aisle next, and as she drops the flower petals on the bottom step at the front of the church, Cristina starts down the aisle. She's joined by one of Michael's friends, and then, just as they reach the front, Kalen starts down the aisle with Alex Karev. She looks gorgeous, and Mark smiles softly, his smile widening when she looks to the side and makes eye contact with him. She barely acknowledges that he's sitting there, instead looking back towards the front. The little boy settles against her legs as Meredith and Michael's brother start down the aisle. Mark watches Kalen run her fingers through the little boys hair until his view is blocked by everyone else standing as George O'Malley walks Izzie down the aisle. Mark stands as well, watching Izzie beam as she heads for the altar. When she arrives and George gives her away, Kalen shuffles both of the children to the first row and then returns to her place between Meredith and Cristina as the ceremony begins.

At the reception, Mark sits at the back table drinking champagne and watching the others dance and have a good time. He watches Kalen dance with Karev and then with Derek, and they look his direction once, but neither of them makes their way over to his table to say hi. He flirts with the other women at the table, and finally agrees to dance with Meredith the fourth time she asks. When the dance is over, Cristina stops Meredith to ask her a question, and Mark takes that opportunity to follow Kalen to the bar.

"Hi." He says softly, leaning against the bar.

She glances over at him. "Hi." She says, though he isn't sure if it's to him or to the bartender, because she immediately orders a beer and a sprite. When the bartender begins to prepare her drinks she turns, looking him in the eye. "Mark."

He smiles. "Kalen."

"What are you doing here?"

"Izzie invited me."

"You hate weddings."

"I do not." He smirks. "I _love_ weddings. Drunk bridesmaids." He says, scanning her up and down.

"I'm not planning on getting drunk." She snaps.

He laughs. "They never do." Kalen lets out an exasperated sigh and takes the drinks, thanking the bartender before heading back towards her table. "Hey, wait!" Mark chases after her, sliding in front of her to get her to stop. "Is he mine?"

"What?"

"The little boy. The one with red curls and your nose and Addison's devilish grin. Is he mine?"

"Nathan has a father." Kalen says softly. "Alex is a wonderful husband and father."

"I didn't ask if he had a father, I asked if he was mine."

"It doesn't matter."

"It does to me!" Mark is a little surprised at how loud his voice gets and how many people turn, but he doesn't take his eyes off Kalen. "Is he mine?"

Kalen sighs. "Only biologically." She hisses, moving around him towards her table. Mark stands in his spot, stunned, for a moment before turning and following her. Kalen is setting the beer in front of Alex, who stands when Mark reaches the table and pulls Kalen away by her arm. "What do you want?"

"Why didn't you tell me?" He hisses, crossing his arms over his chest. "You could have at least told me that you kept the baby."

"I didn't find it necessary."

"He's my child."

"No," She snaps, "he's not. Alex is Nathan's father, biological or not doesn't matter."

"Kalen…"

She grabs him by the arm and pulls him out of the room, finally dropping his arm when they're standing on the street outside. "Mark, you didn't want a child. You thought you did, but you didn't. And your letter managed to convince me that I could be a mother but you said nothing about wanting to be a father."

"That doesn't mean…"

"Mark please. Nathan is happy. I'm happy. Please don't turn his whole world upside down by demanding that he know that you're his father."

Mark's heart breaks when he realizes that she doesn't want him anywhere near their child and he scowls. "I bet you're a horrible mother." He hisses, ignoring the look of pain on her face. The front doors fly open and Alex tells him to leave, ushering Kalen back inside before Mark even has a chance to respond. He walks angrily away from the hotel, and spends the rest of the weekend locked in a hotel room with Meredith, whom he takes with him to New York.

Fifteen years later, he hears from Izzie that Kalen is the head of the legal department at Seattle Grace, where Alex is Chief of Surgery. He and Meredith live together and have a practice together, but marriage was never discussed, and children are entirely out of the question. He's happy and she's happy, and that's all that counts anymore.

On his 60th birthday, there's a knock on the door of his office, and a young man of 18 steps inside. Mark recognizes him right away, and when the boy says his that his name is Nathan, Mark nods and tells him to sit. He has his assistant cancel all of his appointments, and he and Nathan spend the rest of the day talking. Before Nathan leaves, he slides a graduation ticket across the desk.

"I love my parents," he says, smiling. "They're both wonderful people, and I love my siblings. But when Mom asked if there was one person I wanted at my graduation more than anyone else and I said you, she told me to bring you the ticket. She thought she was doing right by me by keeping you out of my life, and maybe she was, but I'm 18 now, and I'd like you to be a part of my life. You are, after all, my father."

Mark nods and picks the ticket up, grinning. "I'll be there."

_fin_


End file.
